Hermione: A Different Take on Things
by RedRoses130
Summary: When ten year old Hermione Viennere learns about magic, she is skeptical. Not only has she been recently been orphaned, but her scientist parents wouldn't have believed it, right? Wrong. Along with her two best friends, Lily Evans and Severus Snape, Hermione embarks the Hogwarts Express on a remarkable journey, where she is determined to solve the mysteries of her new home.
1. The Beginning of the Past

**Hey guys! Because I've recently started to take a liking to Hermione time traveling fics (don't ask me why, please) and decided to try to test the Hermione-Sirius waters (lol). Anyway, I hope you enjoy it. I'll try to update in at least a fortnight (two weeks) each time, but it might be that there's a month's break between chapters. Just to warn you, ahaha. Also, if you're interested in the story and might want to continue reading, may I suggest reading the AU's both at the top and bottom of the page? They'll contain information about the story. **

**P.s. – I plan on making this fic a bit more lengthy than the others, which is the reason for the lack of updates (no… of **_**course**_** I'm not talking about the fact that I'm a lazy ass). **

* * *

_Chapter One_

By no means were John and Olivia Viennere ready for the news that awaited them in the doctor's office. It had been raining all day, and the couple had rushed to the clinic panicked because they were late.

"What do you mean you can't hear its heart beat?" Asked John.

Deep down, he knew perfectly well what this meant – after all, he was a highly accomplished scientist. He and Olivia, a pretty brunette with striking caramel eyes, had met two years previously when she was introduced as his new assistant. Olivia claimed it had been love at first sight (after all, it had been proven that a person could fall in love in a fraction of a second), but due to protocol, they couldn't formally start a relationship. When they were finally cleared to date (they had gone and gotten it checked up with the board) they had already been secretly courting and were ready to marry. After only a couple months of a happy life, it was shown that they were expecting.

But now it felt like their world was crashing down. They had _just _moved into a larger house, in the wealthy-off neighborhood two blocks away from Spinner's End. In fact, Olivia's hair curly locks were still flecked with yellow paint from the nursery they had been painting.

"Surely you've made a mistake," said Olivia shrilly, "I'm perfectly healthy and I've been keeping up with all the requirements – I've even started listening to Bach with it!"

The doctor, a greying man in his early fifties with stern eyes, sighed sympathetically. He told them that they were still young, and that they had plenty of time. But he could see the woman start to panic, and knew that a troublesome first miscarriage was almost always near-impossible to recover from.

"Adoption is another option," he said, not unkindly.

Olivia started to sob, because she felt that it wouldn't be the same. Her more logical side reasoned that her motherly instincts would kick in, but her hormonal side argued that it wouldn't. They thanked the doctor bitterly and hurried out the front door, apologizing to the various glowing couples they bumped into during their haste.

* * *

Outside it was still raining, and the two Vienneres shivered in their long woolen jackets. Olivia re-wrapped her scarf around her neck and ears, and was most certainly glad she did so. For with the scarf muffling out any sounds from the outside world, she would have probably never heard the weak cry of a child. She stopped in her tracks and that day, the first week of May, 1960, the day she and her husband realized that she had miscarried, she found a beautiful baby girl in a cardboard box, with nothing more than a light blanket covering her. The baby had dark tufts of brown hair plastered to her face, with large brown intelligent eyes. Upon closer inspection, the couple realized that the eyes were more of a hazel, and Olivia recognized immediately that both her eyes and that of the infant were the same.

"John, John," she cried, motioning to her husband, who had not noticed anything amiss yet.

When he arrived by his wife's side, he cursed loudly. He unzipped his coat and covered the baby with it, who, in response to the soft fabric, calmed a bit and actually cooed.

"We've got to get her to the clinic, Oli!" he exclaimed.

They were still relatively close to where they had received the world shattering news, and they both realized that the mother of the baby or whoever else had left it here, meant for it to be found. The day had started out nice enough, and the clouds had only started rolling in minutes before the pair had left their new home. They rushed back to the clinic, demanding that the same doctor come again. The receptionist at the front desk had glared at them imploringly in the beginning, but she did a double take after she saw the moving bundle. The same doctor as before came to hurriedly greet them at the door, and he immediately checked the child's vital signs and whatnot. Due to their rich academic backgrounds, both John and Olivia, much to the elderly man's chagrin, decided that they should best do it themselves. Flashing their ID badges quickly, they set to work. The infant was healthy enough, except she was yawning wildly, as if to say, _'I'm tired. Can we go home now?'_ Olivia giggled, and the two scientists stayed with the baby until well into the evening.

* * *

Every day for a month the girl, who remained nameless but was called 'Sunny' by her care-takers, was visited at the clinic by Olivia and John. They would stay two or three hours each visit, showering the infant with kisses each time they got paged to work. But finally, they were allowed to take her home. Of course, it had led to a big discussion in the beginning; John thought she didn't want to adopt, but Olivia was finally to convince him.

"We're taking you home now, Sunny," said John as he held the gurgling baby in his arms.

"Oh John," said Olivia, "She has a name now. Hermione Viennere, the perfect baby."

John laughed and agreed. He was just as uncertain now as his wife had been before they had found Hermione, though, for he didn't think himself capable. He was a scientist – the kind that little children exchanged stories of. He lightly wondered what made it different now that he was adopting and when Olivia was pregnant when he realized that now he had a _choice_, and that scared him because, what if he made the wrong one? But he looked once more at their new daughter, and as soon as he caught sight of her curly brown locks he knew he didn't have to be afraid anymore, because both his girls were _perfect_.

* * *

Raising Hermione to be the six year old she currently was hadn't been easy. She had been an easy baby, almost never crying, but as soon as she had been old enough to walk, she started wreaking havoc. She had been read to, of course, from classics and the college text books on science her adoptive father had written, but it never seemed to be enough for her. The high point in John's life had been, however, when she picked up his classic violin and gently pat the strings. Originally both he and Olivia had decided on raising her to be the average female, without any of the pressure of the academic society on her, but the girl was just begging for it. So she learned to read better than people four times her age by the time she was three, and by the age of four she was already composing violin pieces to go with all the elements of the periodic table. She had always been ignored, which she didn't really seem to mind, but it worried her parents a bit too much. So instead of sticking to the normal plan for having an average daughter, they strived to create a prodigy. They sent her to summer camps for sports and music (she had been sent home from the first because, apparently, she had made something explode), paid for arts lessons and everything. The Vienneres never had a child of their own blood, so they made every moment with Hermione count. This was shown clearly when Hermione had her nightly nightmares. They were always the same, and though they highly doubted this, both John and Olivia suspected that she had lived up to some sort of trauma before she was found.

"There was a man without a nose," Hermione would sob each morning, "like a snake, and he took me from a woman who's crying."

She would always wake up after that part, but Hermione never felt like she needed to see more, though her parents always made her feel a little safer. So it didn't come as a surprise when Hermione was left alone for a night, because her Auntie Rossum was doing unwell and was sent to the hospital, that she was taking a nap and had the same horrific dream. Without anyone to soothe her, though, she was at loss for what to do and ran out the door. Normally she wouldn't have done that, for even as a six year old she had been exceptionally bright and rational. But without her parents to tell her that she was alright and that nobody could hurt her, she just bolted. With her mass of brown curls flying behind her pale pajama-clad frame, she looked like such a strange sight. But the Vienneres were usually viewed quite strange, what with their fancy jobs and porches filled to the brim with bookshelves full of science tomes out for everyone to borrow. Panting heavily, Hermione reached the school playground and curled up into a ball in the sand box. It was spring break, and most of the children had left town for some more exotic place in England.

"Are you alright?"

Hermione looked up and saw two girls, roughly the same age as her. One, the shortest, had long red hair and brilliant almond shaped green eyes. The other girl couldn't have been more different from her companion; she had an abnormally long neck with features that slightly resembled a horse, with a matching mane of dull brown to boot. It had been the second, the one who resembled a horse, who had spoken.

"I need not to be bullied tonight," said Hermione.

Both girls glanced at each other subtly.

"We're not here to _bully you_, silly," chirped the other girl.

Hermione recognized her from school, as they were both in the same class. This was Lily Evans, who every boy gave flowers to and every girl giggled with.

"I'm Petunia, and this is my younger sister Lily," said the older one with authority.

Hermione rubbed her face against the thick woolen sweater she was wearing. It was already October and a thin layer of frost constantly coated the roof tops and window panes.

"I'm Hermione," she sniffed.

The two Evans girls beamed down at their newly acquired friend. Hermione stood up and dusted herself off.

"Do you want to see a trick?" Asked Lily suddenly.

She looked so eager that Hermione, who did not believe in 'tricks', couldn't deny her. Excited, the little red-head picked up a daisy, even though Petunia protested vehemently. Hermione, who was patiently waiting for her companion to twirl the daisy so that all the leaves fell off, gasped when it spun _upward _instead of downward, like she had expected. Both she and Petunia watched in amazement as the dainty little flower flew around them like a little spaceship.

"How do you do that?" asked both Petunia and Hermione at the same time.

"It's a secret," replied Lily, clasping her hands behind her back and swaying to and fro on the balls of her feet.

"I want to try," cried little Hermione.

Grinning, Lily gave the flower, which had landed deftly in her hands again, to her newest companion. She had shown only her parents and Petunia her little trick before, and it had been met with relative success from them. She was delighted to see that it had gone just as well with Hermione. However, with Hermione it would do _nothing_. No matter how much the little frizzy-haired six year-old tried, the flower wouldn't budge.

Taking pity, Lily instructed, "Think that _you_ are the flower. That _you're _the one who's going to fly. That's what I do!"

Hermione thought about all the things she considered to be connected to flying; freedom and lightness, wings and weight. So concerned was she about what flying was, that she didn't notice that the little flower was already lazily floating around the trio.

"Why, Wh-why, you did it!" hollered Petunia, "You _actually _did it!"

With a start, the flower dropped, and Hermione was sad that she hadn't gotten to see her work clearly. But before she could try again, Petunia had picked up the flower from where it had fallen on the ground, and was fiercely telling herself that she was 'flyingflying_flying_', to no avail. The daisy wouldn't budge, just like it had done with Hermione in the beginning.

"Hermione," said Lily eventually, "would you like to come to dinner with us? Mum always makes extra!"

Pouting, Petunia agreed, and the three made their way to the Evan's house. It wasn't all too far away from Hermione's, maybe two minutes walking slowly. It was a pretty, modest two story structure, with large flowers (petunias) furnishing any empty space and giving off a welcoming, sweet odor. Standing up on her tip toes, a ten year-old Petunia reached for the doorbell and rung twice. From inside the house, the three girls could hear muffled footsteps coming. They weren't hurried, necessarily, but rather like they were dancing along to a jazzy beat.

"Mum's probably dancing," explained a gap-toothed Lily, "its Sinatra week. You know Frank Sinatra, right? Well, anyway, next week it's the Beatles week. We have each once a year."

"Yup," said Petunia, all traces of disappointment from earlier gone, "Last week it was the Rolling Stones. We're not allowed to listen to any other type of music from any other artist during that time. It's actually really fun!"

Hermione didn't doubt it. Though she had heard of all these people, she never really felt the need to listen to them while she had Beethoven and Mozart on her side. She had heard of the Beatles, of course, but with the others she was less acquainted. Hermione bit on her lip with two slightly overlarge teeth, getting more nervous by the second. What if she was sent home? Her parents wouldn't be back till ten, and that was still another four hours away. The thought of having to stay in that big house all alone was nerve wracking. She didn't feel guilty in the slightest, though, because even though she didn't lock the door behind her, there hadn't been a burglary in nearly thirty years.

The door opened with a swing, and a pretty woman said, "Hello, dears, you're actually on time today!"

The woman was possibly in her late thirties or early forties, but she had a bright smile and vivid red hair that made her seem almost ten years younger. Behind her arrived a slightly awkward looking man in his mid-forties, who nevertheless smiled when he saw his daughters.

"I see you've brought a friend," he said, running a hand through his greying hair impulsively.

The Evans family was a close-knit family, and they never denied each other anything. They were the perfect, picturesque ideal looking relatives, and Hermione wanted nothing more than to be part of them, because they seemed too amazing to be real. Besides, she had always wanted siblings.

"May I please call my parents, Mrs. Evens?" Hermione asked quietly.

Laura Evans (nee Bulerry) grinned down at the little girl. She was reminded of a young Gilbert Evans.

"Of course honey. Where are they?" She asked.

"They're at the hospital," replied Hermione monotonously.

Mr. Evans's voice wafted from the kitchen, "Are they okay?" he asked.

Hermione nodded. It wasn't _them _that had landed in the hospital; it had been her aunt. Auntie Rossum was a stubborn seventeen year-old that was not half as kind as her sister. In fact, Hermione had always gotten the feeling that she was resented by her aunt, because Olivia and John spent more time doting on their daughter instead of her. Still, there had been moments when they had all been a family together, and Hermione was sad that one so young stuck in a hospital because of cancer.

"They caught it quite early, though," confided Hermione to the Evans family, "So there's a high chance that she'll be alright."

_Tsk, tsk_, went Laura. It was more of a pitiful sort of sound. As a mother, she felt obligated to ask when they'd return, and Hermione said they'd be back around ten.

"You'll just have to stay with us then, until they come back," Said Mr. Granger.

Both Petunia and Lily agreed whole-heartedly, and Hermione couldn't help but grin approvingly.

* * *

"Mum, Dad, you wouldn't believe what I'm about to tell you," said Lily while they were munching on deliciously baked shepherd's pie.

"'Mione can do the trick, too!" she said.

Mr. Evans almost choked on his food as he processed what his youngest said.

"Really, darling?" Asked Mrs. Evans.

Petunia nodded sullenly.

"It's nothing special, I'm sure," said Hermione uncertainly, "There _must _be a reasonable explanation for it. My parents would certainly be able to find it!"

Mr. Evans agreed readily, but his wife was a bit more skeptical. The rest of the dinner was spent eating cheerfully while listening to Frank Sinatra singing _Fly Me to the Moon_, and by the end of the meal Hermione was more content than she had ever been. Petunia and Lily, too, were as content as Hermione, for they had finally found a friend they really wanted to hang out with. So content were the three that they almost fell asleep in their dining room chairs! So one by one Mr. Evans carried the children to the living room couch and put a warm blanket over them. Both parents were extremely relieved that Lily wasn't the only one who could do 'the trick'. And if such a smart girl like Hermione wasn't worrying, they wouldn't, either; in fact, they'd embrace it as some sort of a genius thing.

It was around eleven that the Vienneres arrived at their doorstep to pick up Hermione, but they were so tired that they almost collapsed on the Evans' household doorstep. John especially was a big fan of Sinatra, so when Mr. Evans offered them a glass of red wine over one of his best albums, they couldn't refuse.

"We have a spare bedroom, you know," said Laura.

Both she and Olivia had taken an immediate liking to each other, and Olivia felt forever in her debt for helping her daughter.

"Oh yes, stay," said Gilbert, "Hermione is already sleeping, and it would be cruel to wake her up now that she's sleeping so soundly."

Olivia was doubtful, but when she saw how peaceful her daughter was – without the nightmares, too – she caved in.

"Al right, then… just this one time," she said.

They all cleaned up, laughing as they did so. Never before had the Vienneres had such a good night with what they considered to be friends, and never had the Evans's been so challenged. So that one night turned into once a month, and they even took vacations together, watching on as their children grew into bright, happy beings. It didn't go unnoticed that Hermione and Lily were exceptionally smart and witty, and they became near inseparable. But as great as they were, they were just as _strange_; accidents started happening around them, the most drastic being when Hermione, after having been teased by the Dursley siblings, woke up with normal sized teeth instead of her larger ones. Though her parents had been distressed, she had been happy and more confident.

The two families were so close, even, that they spent holidays together. It was one fateful New Year's Eve spent in the Viennere household, the very first day of 1970, that the Vienneres got a call from the hospital. It was soon made clear that Hermione's Auntie Rossum, now a booming twenty-year old, was dying. Olivia rushed to put her coat back on, and urged her husband to do the same so they could be by her sister's side.

"I don't want her to die all alone," she cried desperately.

She was in such a state of shock that she couldn't properly do her coat buttons, and her husband had to do it for her. Everybody knew that they couldn't protest, even though the roads were icy. Hermione was to stay home because one so young must never encounter death, as her father put it. They left too hastily to say goodbye.

By this point, the Evans family knew the way around their friend's house like they had lived there themselves. Dinner had already been put on the stove, and they just had to heat it up a bit. They were in the middle of eating chicken with potatoes from the oven when the phone rang.

"Excuse me," said Hermione morosely.

Everyone was sure to keep a slight dark feel to the dinner, so it was appropriate to the dying family member.

"Is this the Viennere household?" Asked a deep male voice from the other side of the line.

Hermione bit her lip and said, "This is Hermione Viennere speaking."

The voice talking to her on the phone was drab; almost cruelly cold as the man told her that he was 'sorry but [her] parents had died in a car accident'. Hermione scoffed, but Mr. Evans came up to her and asked who she was talking to.

"A man says Mum and Dad have died – but that's not possible; they weren't in the hospital. Auntie Rossum was."

Mr. Evans frowned and took over the phone. There was a lot of head nodding and grunts of understanding involved, and by then everybody, including the ten year old Lily, had understood that there was something wrong. It wasn't till half an hour later that Mr. Evans came back and announced that Hermione was now the last living Viennere. Mrs. Evans understood immediately and started sobbing, whereas Hermione just sat at the table with her mouth hanging open. Without any warning, she bolted upstairs and would not come out for two weeks.

* * *

After two months of mourning, life had started to regain some normalcy for Hermione. Her studies went well; she threw herself into her scientific learning in honor of her parents. On that note, talking about the two deceased Vienneres was a big no-no. Whenever someone – a teacher, a friend or even one of her parent's old colleagues – wanted to relive memories with her, she would shut down and fumble with her hands in a distracted manor. The school thought she was going mad, but Laura Evans, now fast approaching her mid-forties, knew that it was not like that.

"I'm afraid," confessed Hermione to Lily, Petunia and their mother one day.

She was looking at them baking that night's dessert (a delicious chocolate pie) when she finally opened up. She hadn't really talked since the night of the deaths. Since then, the Evans family had basically adopted her into their household.

"Of what are you afraid of, dear?" Asked Laura carefully.

Petunia stayed silent, not willing to be the one that broke Hermione. Lily, on the other hand, was almost on the verge of pushy when it came to her best friend opening up to her. At times, Hermione found it comforting that someone was trying so hard.

"I'm afraid that I'm going to die alone, just like my parents were alone, and just like Auntie Rossum did. I still wonder – did she ask herself why there was no one beside her to be strong and brave and that everything and everyone will be alright? Sometimes I just wish I had died with them all," cried Hermione.

Lily jutted out her bottom lip in an attempt not to start sobbing. Wasn't the whole point of Hermione not going with her parents to the hospital that she wouldn't be acquainted with death? Lily had never hated anyone before in her young life, but now she couldn't help but feel immense dislike for the parents who had left their child with nothing but a large inheritance.

And a large inheritance it was; of course, with the cost of three extravagant funerals subtracted from it, it would reduce slightly depending on the extravagance, but it was still a large amount of money that would be kept by lawyers until Hermione became eighteen. She would be given a monthly allowance of 32 British pounds from her newly acquired fortune, and a weekly allowance of ten pounds from the Evans family, on their insistence. That would amount to seventy-two British pounds per month twelve months a year, and that was to increase steadily each year. But that was of no matter to Hermione, who saw it as a restriction to what she was able to do and to what she wasn't. She made a mental note to apply to the ice-cream shop with Lily coming summer.

Lily, seeing how Hermione was lost in thought, exclaimed that they should all go to the park. Everyone in the kitchen agreed readily, as none of them had seen much sun lately. They all bounded up to their rooms (Hermione would, from now on, have to share Lily's until she was able to legally move in to her old house, which her parents had also left her). There they dressed in shorts and baggy tee-shirts, as by this time it was already mid-February. Hermione had been mourning for two months already.

Running to the park, Hermione, Lily and Petunia laughed like maniacs. Each taking a swing, they grinned from ear to ear as they swung their legs to and fro with all the vigor their age provided them with. For a moment, all three had forgotten their sorrows of losing friends and family. It was about an hour later that they had tired from the swings and settled themselves down on the rubber paving of the playground. It was uncomfortably hot, but no one seemed to really mind it. Sitting down with tired, aching legs, Hermione withdrew herself again and Lily, who was slightly hurt from the lack of conversation and the silence that followed her attempts to start it. Then she got an idea. Now that she was on a mission, she left her fourteen year old sister and her withdrawn best friend to go pick some wild flowers. She didn't find any daisies, so she had to settle on a sprig of lavender. She held it up to Hermione, who stared at it as if it were something from outer space.

"Make it fly Hermione. Come on, feel like you're flying!"

Hermione did as she did the first time; she thought of things that she connected to the idea of flying. And as she did so, she felt herself getting lighter and lighter, as if she was shedding a heavy, ragged skin. Lily and Petunia saw it too, and even Petunia grinned in content when she saw her best friend smile blissfully. It wasn't until Hermione actually _floated above the ground_ that she became worried.

"HERMIONE, get _down_," exclaimed the girl shrilly.

Lily was looking on in glee as her friend was showing them a magnificent trick. She closed her eyes and, by sheer will, managed to raise herself a couple of inches. Ten minutes later, Petunia had gotten them all safely on the ground, and was panting with the effort of it all.

"H-how did you _do _that?" She asked.

"It's because they're witches," said someone.

Fearful that they had been caught, the trio turned around to see a tall, lanky boy around their age. He had a crooked nose and greasy hair that came to his shoulders with black, piercing eyes to match it. His thin lips were pressed together in concentration, but Hermione had to look away because even looking at him, dressed in a thick black overcoat and baggy pants, was too hot for this type of stifling weapon.

"What do you mean, witches? It's rude to call someone a witch," said Petunia.

"No – not you; you're just a muggle," replied the boy.

Hermione noted that there was a slight nasal tone to his voice. Petunia scoffed and crossed her arms.

"Hey, I know who you are," said Petunia spitefully, "you're that Snape boy from Spinner's End!"

She laughed as if to accent that this boy was trouble. Spinner's End the street where the less wealthy lived, the complete opposite from where Hermione, Lily and Petunia came from.

"What do you mean with 'witches'? Like the ones from fairy tales and advertisements?" Asked Hermione.

She didn't particularly like how many of the witches were portrayed in the fairy tales, and the advertisements selling insurance made them seem all silly and girly and just not wicked _enough_.

"Well," began the Snape boy excitedly, "It means we're magical – how old are you two?"

"We're both ten," said Lily shyly.

They'd both be eleven in August, and it was all she and Hermione had talked about three months prior.

"Then I think you'll be getting your Hogwarts letters soon," he said confidently.

Petunia had decided that she had enough of it.

"Rubbish," she exclaimed, "There's no such things as witches and wizards. My sisters and I will be leaving now!"

Originally Hermione would've protested (learning about cults had always been interesting), but she was extremely pleased that Petunia, who was hard to impress even throughout their years of friendship, had called her their sister. Lily was also unsure, but Petunia was her older sister and thus she was revered. Biting her lip, Hermione smiled at the boy before leaving with her newly found 'sisters'.

* * *

June brought surprises to everyone. Hermione had always been an early riser, being preceded only by Laura, who, on the second Saturday of the month, woke the whole house with a scream.

"I-i-i-t's an _owl_! A bloody _OWL! _What the hell is a bloody _owl _doing at our window, Gilbert? WHAT. IS. IT. DOING?" She exclaimed when everybody had crowded in the kitchen.

It was no secret that Laura Evans was deathly afraid of birds. As she saw it, they had multiple advantages that she did not, and that there was no real place to hide from them. They could fly, while she could not. They had sharp, shiny beaks, another thing she didn't have. Not to mention that they always left a mess of excrement and feathers behind. In a moment of rash boldness, Lily dashed forward to shoo the offending creature away. But the owl, instead of flying away like a normal bird, pecked the glass again and held up its claw, staring expressionlessly at the family members' one at a time.

"Why, look," called Petunia, "It's holding letters!"

Lily let out a snort of laughter, and Hermione studied the bird intently. It wasn't like a carrier pigeon, which the people of old times sometimes trained to send letters short ways. So what could it be, she asked herself? The only real way to figure it out was to test it, and so she made her way to the window, much to her new guardian's protests.

"So, Owl," she said slowly, "What do you have for us today?"

Her voice was smooth and sweet, or at least how much so children of her age could manipulate their voice to sound so. Petunia and Lily watched in rapt fascination, and the youngest sibling hid behind the eldest. The owl cocked its head and stuck out its leg, moving it a bit so that the letters jingled from their perch. Hermione gingerly took the letters with all the gentleness she could muster, her hair frizzing with determination. After she had safely removed the letters, the owl hooted softly and nuzzled her hand affectionately. From behind the scene, Mrs. Evans almost shrieked.

"There's one addressed to both of us," said Hermione, motioning to two separate envelopes.

Gingerly, before her parents could reply, Lily snatched hers up and sped back towards Petunia. The letters were addressed to them in green ink, and on them their exact location. Both girls opened them eagerly, where they read:

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry _

_Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore _

_(Order if Merlin, First Class, Grand Src,, Chg. Warlock, _

_Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards) _

_Dear Hermione Viennere, _

_ We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. _

_Term begins on September 1. We await your owl no later than July 31. _

_Yours sincerely, _

_ Minerva McGonagall _

_ Deputy Headmistress _

Hermione frowns and turns the page quickly. Out of the corner of her eyes she sees Lily read it softly out loud to her parents. The second page was a mere list of outrageous sounding items.

_UNIFORM: _

_First-year students will require: _

_Three sets of plain work robes (black) _

_One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear _

_One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar) _

_One winter cloak (black, with silver fastenings) _

_Please note that all pupil's clothes should carry name tags. _

_COURSE BOOKS _

_All students should have a copy of each of the following: _

_ **The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) **_

_By Miranda Goshawk _

_ **A History of Magic **_

_By Bathilda Bagshot _

_ ** Magical Theory **_

_By Adalbert Waffling _

_ ** A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration **_

_By Emeric Switch _

_ **One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi **_

_By Phyllida Spore _

_ ** Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them **_

_By Newton Scamander _

_ **The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection **_

_By Quentin Trimble _

_OTHER EQUIPMENT _

_1 Wand_

_Pewter, standard size 2 _

_1 Set glass or crystal phials _

_1 Telescope _

_1 set of Brass scales _

_Students may also bring, if they desire, an owl OR a cat OR a toad_

_PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICK _

_Yours sincerely, _

_Lucinda Thomsonicle-Pocus _

Hermione waited for the others to finish reading aloud. While they did so, Hermione noticed the owl was starting to get agitated. She grabbed a scone from a breakfast plate and crumbled it onto a napkin, where the owl enthusiastically pecked at it before hooting a goodbye and flying off. Hermione was watching it fly off, looking at the wing movements and which way it turned when Petunia giggled.

"Oh, how _silly_," she exclaimed with all the certainty of one her age.

"Oh hush, Tuney," said her mother in a reprimanding tone.

"But it _is _silly, Mum," replied Petunia.

She giggled some more, but she quieted down when she saw the cogs in Hermione's mind working.

"It makes sense," said Hermione, "sort of."

Mr. Evans wrinkled his nose in confusion. What made sense? But Mrs. Evans also caught on, and Lily soon afterwards.

"All of the strange things that have happened – my teeth, the flowers_, us_," continued Hermione, "can all be explained by the simple fact that we're not _normal_. Before this was thought of as worrisome, and maybe even harmful. Like we were freaks or something."

Lily and her parents made sounds of protest, but Petunia bit her lips guiltily, as if she had been thinking those thoughts exactly.

"But if there are more of us…?" asked Lily hopefully.

"If there are more of us, I think I can hypothesize that we are mutations. The good kind, mind you, the kind that scientists will talk about in the future, because we, in essence, _are _the future."

No one said anything. It all made so much sense while still being utterly confusing, but everybody got the message clearly:

Lily and Hermione weren't _freaks_. They were _prodigies. _

* * *

"It still sounds fishy to me," said Petunia after a while of impressive silence.

Her tone was short and clipped, like it became when she was jealous. Behind their eldest daughter's back, Laura and Gilbert exchanged glances. They always believed that their youngest and her best friend were higher than average, but this seemed a bit crazy, even though they hated to admit it. Just then, there came a knocking from the door. Laura hesitantly went to answer it, not knowing if she should answer or play the old 'no one's here' trick. She decided to answer it.

She was assaulted with the sight of a sluggish man, with small, jovial eyes and a large grin plastered on his face. He wore old-fashioned trousers, a tweed jacket and a monocle that seemed too serious for his friendly face.

"How do you do, madam," he said, 'My name is Professor Horace Slughorn, part of the Hogwarts staff!"

He took the silence on the other end of a door as an invite and squeezed himself in, apologizing anytime he bumped against something. His frame took up the entire hallway, and accidentally knocked over the plastic umbrella stand. This lead to his trying to pick it back up, which started a chain reaction of breaking furniture.

"Do you wish for something to drink, Professor?" Asked Hermione respectfully.

As a professor, she found he must be treated with the utmost care and respect, as if he were a prized fragile sculpture.

"No thank you my dear," he chuckled.

When everybody was settled down, Lily and Hermione on the ground with crossed legs, Slughorn began speaking.

"Hogwarts was founded over a thousand years ago, and it is now one of the finest schools in the Wizarding world – due, partially, to the excellent teaching skills, of course."

Lily raised a skeptical eyebrow but Hermione gasped in delight.

"On behalf of the teaching staff, we'd like for both Hermione and Lily to enroll for the next seven years, which is how long education lasts in our world. This would be a bit difficult, of course; your children wouldn't be able to perform magic in front of muggles – non magic folk – without risk of expulsion from the school and Wizarding society. This rule can be bended when the student is in danger yadiyadiyadi, it will all be taught to your children at Hogwarts. Any questions?"

Hermione raised her hand, forgetting that she was not at school. Slughorn straightened and called on her, nodding in encouragement.

"Sir, what makes us different from the… er… _muggles_?"

Slughorn scratched the side of his face and looked at Hermione for a second or two.

"The difference is, my dear, that we can do _magic_."

Hermione's face soured a bit, as if she had sucked on a fresh lemon.

"Naturally, sir – but what gives us the ability to perform in the place of others? Is there a mutation in our DNA sequence? I already thought that, but I wasn't sure at all!"

Slughorn frowned and took a piece of paper from his pocket. He sighed when he read what was on it.

"You must be Hermione Viennere, the daughter of the late Viennere scientists."

Hermione nodded impatiently. From next to her, Lily giggled at the sight of her friend, whose hair was frizzing all over the place.

"Yes, well," said Slughorn after a small hesitation, "that shall all be explained at the school itself. A bit of mystery never did anyone wrong, did it?"

Hermione sulkily calmed down and replied with a soft 'I suppose not'. Both Laura and Gilbert asked a few more questions, and with each passing moment, the three children could see that they were being won over. Petunia watched on gravely as Lily whispered something in Hermione's ears secretively, making the other girl giggle.

The Professor stayed for another fifteen minutes, assuring the family that the girls would be perfectly safe. He spoke of Hogwarts like it was the most prestigious and wonderful place on earth, and he spoke with such conviction that everyone believed it to be so.

"How do we sign them up?" Asked Gilbert.

* * *

After they had been signed up and ready to go, Petunia had stopped conversing with the people living with her and spending more time with the next door neighbor's children, Marge and Vernon Dursley. This made Lily sad, but also bitter, and one day she yelled at her sister that 'such plain people fit together perfectly, just like dry crumpets'. Petunia had taken the comment to heart, and made a point to decline butter each morning when offered it.

"She'll come around," said Hermione soothingly.

It was Beatles week again, and she was flipping through the records the family owned. Her favorite one, Abbey Road, was sitting on top for tonight. She was thinking again, about Hogwarts. Though Slughorn had been very thorough, Hermione's need was still not quenched.

"Do you remember that Snape boy that Tuney got so angry at?" Asked Hermione.

Lily nodded absent-mindedly. Today, July 2nd, on the day both girls celebrated their birthdays, they were going out to eat.

"Well, I think we should talk to him before school starts," said Hermione.

The other girl did a double take. She didn't mind the aspect of new friends or acquaintances, but rather the fact that this time it wasn't she who had suggested it. It made her wonder what sort of worth Hermione saw in the possible alliance.

"It's a win-win situation, really," said Hermione slowly, "He gets the friend he was obviously pining for, and we get a new friend _and _ more information about Hogwarts."

"What makes you think he knows anything about Hogwarts?" Asked Lily.

"He called us witches, Lily – that has got to count for something."

Lily groaned, but eventually agreed. The Snape boy hadn't seemed like the nicest person on the block.

/

It didn't take them long to find the Snape boy. He sat behind the Lover's Creek (named thus because of the many couples to come here at night), poking a long stick in the water. Hermione wasn't exactly a master at social skills, so she just let Lily introduce them. However, Lily thought differently.

"I'm Lily Evans, and today is my birthday," she said.

There was an awkward pause while Lily nudged Hermione to talk. The boy's sociality was just as low as Hermione's, it was quickly realized.

"And I'm Hermione Viennere, and today my birthday is celebrated, too."

The boy looked at them with furrowed brows.

"My name is Severus Snape," he said, "My birthday was in February."

Both Lily and Hermione giggled, and Severus blushed.

"We need to ask you something," said Hermione.

Snape took a step back, thinking that they were there to tease and pick on him like the other kids did.

"What did you mean, we're witches?" the two girls asked in unison.

He sighed, relieved. He brought one hand up to his hair and ruffled the long locks, wishing it was shorter so it didn't fall in his eyes so much. He nervously asked them if they had gotten letters yet, and when they said yes he visibly relaxed.

"So did I. Isn't it just great? I can't wait until I can go to Hogwarts!"

It was hard not to get caught up on his excitement.

"Yes – Hermione and I cannot wait to get our wands!" Laughed Lily.

Hermione grinned and asked, "Severus, would it be possible for you to tell us more about the school?"

Severus nodded eagerly. He told them of the four different houses, and Hermione said that Ravenclaw sounded the best. Severus said that Slytherin was the best, and that all three should want to be in that particular house. By that time they had formed such a bond that they all agreed that, no matter what, they'd try to be in the same house as each other. Afterwards, they talked of things such as charms and potions and quidditch (something that both Hermione and Lily did _not _see the point of), and how Severus was aching to leave as soon as possible.

"Severus, would you like to come to our birthday party?" asked Hermione.

He seemed dubious again. He wringed his hands together in violent motions, as if there was some sort of inner turmoil he was fighting.

"I… uh… I don't have anything to give you two…" he said.

Lily grinned and said, "We don't need any more gifts – just more friends."

Severus grinned and dusted off his coat. Together they made their way to where the party was being held, in the park. It was just a small event, with the three other Evans family members. Petunia had invited Marge Dursley, who had brought along her brother, Vernon. Because it was such a small party, and because plenty of food had been made, neither Gilbert nor Laura complained about Severus's presence. Only Petunia put her nose up in the air, muttering something about 'freaks' before walking off to the fountain with her 'new besties'.

"Is it just me," Severus asked Hermione, "Or has she gotten even uglier since the last time?"

Because he didn't seem to say it out of meanness, Hermione let it slide and decided to vent a bit herself.

"Only in personality," she muttered darkly.

Lily overheard this and tried to stay mad, only to giggle in agreement.

"I think your _'We'reprogidiesandwe''_ speech really got to her, 'Mione," she said jokingly.

Hermione huffed indignantly, crossing her arms in irritation.

"Well it's true. And who is to say that we're the strange ones – at least we're nice and have never called anyone a freak. That's more than she can say for herself!"

Severus looked at the two fuming girls silently, and mentally decided that he should try _never _being the one to get to their bad side. But the little quarrel was forgotten soon after it was announced that the presents would be given, though the two girls looked a little upset that her sister was still somewhere else with the Dursleys. Lily had gotten fantasy novels about magic, which she absolutely loved. Hermione unwrapped her presents and found that she had been given all of Darwin's books to study. They had officially bought each other's birthday present early, a matching pair of mood rings, but they still had something for each other. Lily gave Hermione they favorite picture of just them two, Hermione on the swing and Lily on the ground, laughing at something her friend had said, clutching the iron ropes that connected the seat of the swing to the roof. Hermione was greatly touched, and gave, with great merit, her friend an old fashioned locket with a picture of the Evans family in one side, and a picture of them two in the other. Hermione had roughly the same one, though hers was with both her parents filling the sides. The two girls grinned at each other, beckoning Severus to come with them.

"Hogwarts is going to be the best," said Lily.

Everyone agreed.

* * *

**Sooooooooooooooo, how did you like it? I'm deleting some of my other stories so that I can write this one. That is, all the unsatisfactory ones. I'm really going to try to expand on the ones that have potential to be something big. I tried to make this story different by making each chapter longer, and I hope you don't really mind my spin on things that much. Also, since this isn't a major plot story, Snape came into the picture later than he did with JK Rowling, so I'm not using any of the things that might compromise their relationship, like the branch falling on Petunia's head. Anyway, I DON'T OWN ANYTHING! **

**RedRoses130 **

**p.s.- What would you think of a Hermione/Abraxas Malfoy fic? I'm really in the timeOC thing this time :D**


	2. The Start of the Journey

**Hey guys! So, if you've read any of my previous stories, you might've realized that I deleted some of my other stories. Sorry, it had to be done; too much of things I wasn't interested in. But for people who HAVEN'T read any of my other stories, WELCOME to my HermionexSirius fic. I would like to thank **_**Miridea, Nicxy, **_**and **_** .Xx**_** for being the first three reviewers! :D **

**REVIEWER QUESTIONS: **

** _Q -_**_isn't Abraxas in the year of Voldemort and is the father of Lucius? _

_**A - Why yes. Yes he is. But, as I mentioned in the other chapter, I'm in this Hermione time-travel obsession phase. And Abraxas, to me, sounds like one sexy beast, and those time-travel fics seem like the most interesting ones, because the main character can really establish a lot then, maybe even change history, ha-ha. Also, you can take these fics in many different directions, because they're so versatile. You can just have fun with them and go all out, change the details as much as you want whereas with the normal fics you fave to be more careful. **  
_

**I forgot to tell you this last time, but, yes, Hermione's dreams **_**are **_**more important than they seem to be at first glance. Don't worry – you'll figure it out soon enough. This chapter I'm going to further elaborate on Snape's character. That should be fun, and you'll get to meet new characters (well… now really exactly new, eh?), too. **

**I DON'T OWN ANYTHING, and J.K. Rowling does own everything except this specific plot and some of my own characters that will be introduced in later chapters, **

**RedRoses130 **

* * *

**Chapter Two **

* * *

"Are you sure your mum doesn't mind, Sev?" asked Lily.

For the millionth time, Severus shook his head in assurance. He and his mother, the mysterious Eileen Prince, were taking the whole Evans family to Diagon Alley. Out of all of them, there was no one more excited than Hermione, who had squealed at the mere idea of all the books she would be able to buy. She had saved up money especially for this, not spending _any _money since June, and it was now August. That meant that she had saved sixty-four pounds from her parent's allowance, and eighty pounds from the weekly one that the Evans family provided for her. In total, she had over a hundred pounds to spend on whatever she wished. Petunia, on the other hand, had decided to go against brining any of her money, as she deemed it 'a freak's play', not eager to show how curious she actually was. Lily had been hurt, and refused to talk to her sister for the rest of the day, and Hermione, though she was slightly wounded, had never been particularly close to Petunia, even if they were considered to have been on quite good terms before the Hogwarts letter.

A knock on the door alerted the awaiting family that Severus's mother had arrived. Lily squealed in delight and even Hermione, usually calm and collected, jumped from foot to foot in anticipation. They had never met their new best friend's mother before, and Lily had not been able to stop gushing about how excited she was to finally meet the 'driving force behind Severus Snape'. However, upon opening the door, both Hermione and Lily were sorely disappointed at what they were met with.

Eileen Prince was a tall, lanky woman much like her son, looking just as intimidating. But even Severus had softer edges to him, and Hermione reasoned that personality wise, the boy must take more after his father.

"I'm Hermione Viennere, and it's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Snape," she said with a determined grin.

Eileen studied the girl's hand like it was an insect and said, "I never took my husband's last name. I remain a Prince."

Hermione frowned but did not take back her hand. She would win this woman over, and fulfill both of her friend's wishes to be close-nit. Stiffly, Eileen shook Hermione's hand, and Lily did not try to do the same. Instead, the usually sharp Lily was so concerned with impressing her friend's mom that she did the thing that would most likely have a repulsive effect on the woman: she hid behind her father. Gilbert Evans, who was a greying man with decades of experience, did not let the woman's cold mannerisms faze him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you; my girls won't stop talking about how great your son is."

Snape and Lily blushed, though Hermione didn't seem fazed. She was proud to be considered one of 'Gilbert's girls', because it meant that she was fully admitted to the family. Eileen allowed herself to smile, even though it looked more like a grimace. Hermione thought it to be improvement, and grinned in victory. Not one for small talk, Eileen beckoned them to follow shortly afterward, and gave no more than one-syllable answers to Laura's questions. Walking behind everyone else, Hermione surveyed the group. Eileen and her son were dressed almost identically, with matching black coats. Petunia was walking next to her mother at the head of the group, where both were looking around skittishly, probably wondering what a person would do if the group was caught doing something magical. Severus and Lily walked together, Severus apologizing softly about his mother's behavior. Hermione let out a big huff.

"What's wrong, Kiddo?" Asked Gilbert, surprising Hermione.

"Nothing, sir," said Hermione meekly.

Gilbert frowned, knowing that he wasn't being answered a hundred percent honestly. He cleared his throat softly, and Hermione spilled when she heard it. Gilbert was always a good listener, and always had a piece of fatherly advice to hand out.

"It's just – I'm talentless. I'm smart, yes, but that's it. Books! And cleverness! There are more important things – like Lily is an amazing baker, and Severus is an amazing artist. I burn water at my best, and even with my eye for detail, it takes me hours to draw a single face, whereas Sev can draw Lily and me _both_ in the span of ten minutes!"

Gilbert laughed, earning himself a glare from Hermione

"Is _that _what you're worrying about, Kiddo?" his tone softened, "You don't play your father's violin anymore."

Hermione looked away. John had been teaching her the violin on his own personal instrument, promising that he was going to get her one for herself for her twelfth birthday, but instead he had died a month before he could. He had even made the taken the necessary measurements, which he had meant to take to the shop a week after the accident happened, so they could personalize it.

"I was rubbish at that, anyway," lied Hermione.

"In that case," said Gilbert, not wanting to push his luck, "Find something else you're good at."

So engrossed were they in their conversation, that Hermione bumped straight into Petunia, who vehemently told her to 'watch it'.

"Is this it?" Asked Laura, "I thought you said it would be in London."

Eileen replied that it was, which confused both Laura and Gilbert greatly. They lived near Oxford, approximately fifty-five miles away from London.

"Did you use magic to speed up time?" Asked Lily.

Severus snorted, and Lily glared at him. Seeing how this would only bite him in the end, Severus tried to cover it up with a cough. Lily didn't seem to believe his act.

"Must've swallowed a fly," he said weakly.

Lily could be quite scary when she got angry, and Hermione knew that first-hand. Severus, instead of complying with the awkward pause that was surely to come, quickly explained that they would only use this as a stop in, as this was the nearest place that had a fireplace hooked up to something called 'the floo-network'. Even though Lily and her family didn't know what in the world that could be, Hermione was quick to elaborate. Severus had leant her one of his books, which he normally wouldn't do unless he absolutely trusted the person with his life, as his books were very precious to him. Eileen waited until Hermione was finished explaining that the floo-network was a quick and efficient method of magical traveling before knocking on the door. A large, robust man answered it, grinning toothily when he saw who it was.

"Sister," bellowed the man, "Finally come ter give yer older brother a visit? And yer brought Sevie too! I'm afraid my son isn't here – the little rat."

Severus cringed at the offending nickname, and Petunia snickered. At the sound of the laughter, the man finally noticed that there were other people present. He looked over each of the strangers carefully, as if scrutinizing if they would be threats. After having seemed to deem them harmless enough, the man introduced himself as 'Scabior'.

"Family name, ye know?" he explained when he saw raised eyebrows at the mention of his name.

"Scabior, we would like to use your floo," said Eileen.

Scabior snorted and said, "Aye, I should've guessed – still haven't set your own up yet?"

Eileen shook her head. Scabior grinned and showed his guests the way to his fireplace.

"And the fire place will bring us there?" Asked Hermione in all seriousness.

"Uh-hur. Jus' remember to state yer destination clearly," Scabior told her.

One by one, Severus going first as an example, they left, with Hermione going second last, just before Eileen. With a hearty wave to Scabior, she calmly said 'Diagon Alley' while throwing a handful of green floo powder. And right then and there, as she felt herself being pulled, Hermione decided that she did _not _like the flooing method at all. When she arrived at the destination, she climbed out of the fireplace dizzily and clumsily.

"You alright, 'Mione?" Severus asked, concerned.

"I'm fine, Sev. Thanks for asking," replied Hermione, smiling at her friend.

They waited for Eileen to come, who arrived in a much more graceful manner than Hermione had. Thanking the heavens that there was at least one less person to witness her embarrassment.

Now that she had the chance to really look around, Hermione saw that they were in a grungy looking pub. There were a bunch of shady looking figures hunched behind a newspaper (which, Hermione noted with much surprise, was decorated with pictures that moved), talking about someone called 'You-Know-Who'. Severus had explained to her that You-Know-Who was a feared serial killer targeting muggle-borns. Hermione felt herself getting queasy. These men looked to be full grown wizards, and even with the chance that they're actually muggle-born, how worried should she be if they, who actually had means of protection, are wary?

"Are you coming, Herms?" Asked Lily.

Lily was the only one who was allowed to call her friend 'Herms', as Hermione detested the endearment.

"Yes. I just needed to clear my head for a bit, I don't think that floo is my favorite method of traveling," Hermione replied.

Lily looked a bit skeptical, but said nothing. She knew better than to interrogate a pensive Viennere. Saying their 'hellos' and 'goodbyes' to Tom, the kind bartender, the group made their way to the back of a small dead end behind the pub. Taking out her wand, Eileen tapped a series of bricks. She did it so quickly and surely that no one but her and her son knew the sequence. When the bricks moved away to reveal an entrance to a bustling street, Petunia nearly fainted.

"Oh my," said Laura softly.

If any of them still had any doubts about the legitimacy of magic, it was now long gone. Carefully stepping into the strangely dressed crowd, the group made their way down the street, looking their eyes out.

"We should probably go get the robes first," Said Eileen monotonously.

Hermione wrinkled her nose while Lily screeched in excitement. She had shopped with Lily and her parents several times, and each time she regretted it instantly. She had never liked trying on clothes, and though she was assured by Severus that the fitting would only take fifteen minutes, half an hour at most, she still did _not _want to stand by a squealing Lily Evans for half an hour. She loved her friend dearly, naturally, but it couldn't be denied that the girl had a pair of lungs made of steel. From the look of it, Severus was also a bit unsure of the robe shop.

"Actually, could we go to the wand shop first? I bet Severus knows where it is," said Hermione.

Eileen frowned, but neither Laura nor Gilbert seemed much to mind. They were far too busy being amazed at what they saw.

"Alright, but no talking to strangers. Severus, make sure to keep out of trouble. We'll be getting your cauldrons for you," said Eileen.

The trio agreed readily, even though Petunia had to come along with them. Watching them like a hawk, Petunia prowled along with the others to _Ollivanders_, a shop Severus himself only had seen the insides of two times. It was a strange shop, with piles and piles of little rectangle boxes littering the floor and shelves. The owner, who Hermione assumed to be Ollivander, was just as strange as his shop. He was tall and willowy, with a long hooked nose.

"Hogwarts students, I take it?" He asks airily.

Severus shakes his head and says, "Only three of us, sir."

Hermione risked a look at Petunia's expression and saw that it's fixed in a sour position, her lips pinched as if trying to keep back harsh comments. Ollivander blinks once, twice, thrice before nodding. He beckons to Severus, who he immediately measured, a floating quill taking notes. Hermione and Lily giggled, because Ollivander was taking measurements in the strangest places, humming in an offbeat tone while he was doing so. Petunia just pinched her lips even tighter, if that was even possible.

"Yes, yes, yes," Said Ollivander.

The man briskly walked to one of the shelves and _plopped _them on the table, where they clattered to a stop in front of Severus. Everybody in the shop looked at him, as if challenging him to do it. He picked one up, and Olivander quickly narrated that it was a Vinewood, springy, eleven inch wand with a dragon heartstring core. Severus waved it around awkwardly and it caused a pile of wands to fall on Petunia, who spluttered with indignation.

"No, no, no," said Ollivander, "Try birch, eleven and a half inches, unicorn hair core, supple."

Again, the wand didn't work. It wasn't until three disastrous tries later that Severus found his perfect match. It was a beautiful wand, a dragon heartstring, ten inches, unyielding, made of Elm. Ollivander nodded appreciatively, as it was an impressive type of wood and a wand that only chose one that had potential to become very advanced. After Severus stepped back to let Lily go, Hermione patted him on the back, silently saying her congratulations. Lily wouldn't stop smiling throughout her measuring, sneezing when Ollivander measured the span of her nose. Lily's wand was found within five minutes and two tries. The first wand she tried, which was made of apple wood and unicorn hair for a core, had rejected her quickly and firmly. It was the second one, a wand with a unicorn hair core, eleven inches, supple, made of Ebony was more than glad to take Lily on as an owner. Once she was given the box with the wand on it, she cooed at how pretty the Ollivander logo was.

"Sir," said Hermione when it was her turn to be measured, "What, exactly, is the connection between the wood and the core and the length of the wand?"

Ollivander looked up from measuring the girl's arm length with a furrowed brow. No one had ever asked him that, except his first and only apprentice, who had lasted no longer than a week in the shop. After that, he'd decided that he would just do everything himself.

"The wand chooses the owner, Miss. A wand is expected to be more of a friend than a tool to a wizard; both personalities have to be matched up," he explained.

Hermione nodded in understanding, although she would've preferred a more detailed explanation. Soon, she was being gently guided to the counter, where Ollivander immediately took out a pair of Elm wood wands. Hermione waved them confidently, sure that she'd soon find the perfect wand. However, half an hour passed, and none of the thirty-five wands that Hermione had tried, worked. Lily had eventually fallen asleep on Severus's shoulder. So discouraged was Hermione, that in a moment of pure exasperation while Ollivander was getting wands from the back, she started lightly banging her head against the countertop, not even stopping when the bell at the entrance rang.

"Having a bit of trouble, I see?"

It was a man who spoke. He was middle-aged but still hadn't lost any of his handsomeness to time. He was grasping the shoulder of a boy around Hermione's age, and closely resembled the man who was accompanying him. They both possessed an easy, graceful air. Whereas the older man's hair was combed back to stay out of his eyes, the boy either didn't try or his hair was too stubborn. It fell into his grey eyes mercilessly, and no amount of pushing it backwards would get it to stay out of his line of vision.

"Just a tad, sir. Can't seem to find the perfect wand," Hermione replied warily, rubbing her sore forehead.

Lily, who had decided to put in her own word said, "She's gone through at least fifty."

Ollivander arrived, carrying a large stack of wands, said, "Actually, she's gone through thirty-five."

The man laughed heartily, and the boy grinned curiously. Hermione blushed furiously, trying to make a swipe for Lily, who dodged her playfully.

"Oh _hush you_," she snarled, "You heard Mr. Ollivander; it's only been thirty-five wands. I'm _sure _I'll find the perfect one soon!"

Severus snorted when Lily muttered something about the thirty-sixth time being the charm, but quickly backtracked when Hermione, armed with another wand, turned and faced him. This time, she almost broke the wand itself, and wouldn't stop apologizing to Ollivander for the next five minutes.

"Yes, well," said the man, "We'll just come back in an hour, shall we?"

Hermione shuffled to and fro on her feet guiltily, nearly biting her lip hard enough to draw blood. But the two late comers didn't seem to mind all too much, and the boy grinned cheekily at her.

"With any luck, you'll still be here after that," said the boy.

Hermione blushed, thinking he was having a laugh at her expense. She muttered a dark goodbye before returning to her tactless wand waving. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her companions nod their farewells and the pair leaving the shop.

"Maybe we should try the rarer woods, Miss," said Ollivander three more wands later.

Hermione nodded tiredly. She was starting to regret suggesting coming here first. At this pace, the boy would be right and they _would _see each other in an hour's time. Hermione gingerly picked up another wand. This one was lighter than the others in color, but heavier in weight. It was a simple wand, decorated only with a simple carved pattern at the handle. It felt more complex than that though, and Hermione could not help but appreciate its simple yet incarnate beauty.

"Dragon heartstring, thirteen inches, supple, cherry wood," said Ollivander.

"Highly wanted in schools in China. Makes for a very powerful tool, especially when it's teamed with a dragon heartstring core, though it is sorely underrated in Europe," he explained.

With a new sense of determination, Hermione lightly but firmly clasped the hilt of the wand, enjoying its cool touch. She waved it in a slashing motion, and the one plant that Ollivander kept in his shop was sliced clean in half.

'Yes, yes, yes," muttered Ollivander while wordlessly repairing the poor cactus, "It seems we have finally found your match, haven't we? Quite a powerful one, too."

Hermione was so gratified that, after Ollivander had packed and given her the wand, she hugged him right around the middle, the highest up she could reach. She wasn't all too fond of hugging and did it sparingly, which resulted in a very awkward hug. Ollivander, who seemed to have the same '_no physical contact, please' _rule, patted her back even more awkwardly. Lily and Severus settled for a wave, and even Petunia managed a smile, though hers was bitter. The three best friends and Petunia almost skipped out of the shop, barging through the doors like nothing had been wrong in the first place, though the latter more reserved about it. It wasn't long before they met their parents in the crowd, as they were making their way to the shop.

"Severus – didn't we tell you and your friends to stay in the store until we came to get you?" asked his mother.

Severus blushed and mumbled an apology, looking at the ground. Eileen let out a long sigh, and everyone was able to see the vulnerable side to her; she did not like the thought of losing sight of her son.

"It's my fault, Mrs. Prince," said Hermione, "It took me too long to find my wand, and Lily was getting a bit lightheaded."

Eileen scrutinized the girl carefully before rubbing her face. Lily didn't _seem _sick, but she also sensed that there was some truth behind what was said.

"In that case," interrupted Gilbert, "It might be best to get something to drink and eat first. It's just about lunch time, I believe."

Laura nodded her head in agreement and they made their way to a little restaurant, where a young waitress greeted the group politely. It was a dusty sort of place, and, had Lily really been feeling sick, the pub would definitely not have benefited her in the slightest. But as soon as they had ordered and sat themselves down, both Hermione and Lily felt a bit better. Petunia had decided that she would rather not eat the food she described as 'distasteful looking', and sipped tightly from a cup of water.

"Can we see your wands?" asked Laura.

Laura was many things – she was an amazing mother, one who liked soap operas more than she should, and was slightly paranoid that birds would come and peck her eyes out as she slept, but she was also _curious. _And this might have been strange for a stay-at-home mom of her age and caliber, but she had never ever been one to just stay back if an opportunity presented itself to her. But what she didn't know was that her eldest daughter was harboring bitter feelings to the thing Laura herself thought to be one of the greatest things in the world. Without another word, an angry Petunia stood up abruptly and walked back out, her chair letting out a large screech in the process. Both Laura and Gilbert protested, as none of them but Severus and Eileen really knew their way around Diagon Alley.

"May we be excused? I think Lily and I need to get some air," said Hermione importantly.

Subconsciously, the Evans parents relaxed; Hermione was the responsible type, and had always acted like a sort of peace keeper around Lily and her sister. Sometimes they really wished that she was their daughter, too, but the best they could do was accepting her into the family and just pretend she was.

"Alright," said Gilbert finally, "Just don't stay out too long… We still need to get the rest of your supplies."

Hermione and Lily nodded pleasantly and waved at the waitress. Severus stood up, but sat back down after Lily gave him a look that clearly said, '_don't – you'll only make it worse'_. He didn't mind all too much, as he didn't particularly care for the eldest Evans sibling, but he was more worried about his friends. Much like there were shady muggles, there were shady wizards who wouldn't hesitate to pounce on easy prey. But when those two set their minds on something, it was going to happen, no questions asked.

* * *

As soon as the two eleven year olds got outside, they started panicking. They didn't see Petunia anywhere. As they started walking around and calling their sister, never straying too far from each other, Hermione bumped into someone in front of her.

"I'm terribly sorry," cried out Hermione blindly.

She did not feel like stopping for a chat, especially in a place she knew virtually nothing about. She hadn't even been able to read anything about it! The person she had bumped into laughed shyly. Looking up, Hermione saw that she had bumped into a boy no older than herself, sporting a large yet faint scar on his face. He was rather tall for his age, and his hair was long enough to hide some of the scarring on his face.

"It's quite alright. I bumped into you too, you know," he said.

Hermione raised an eyebrow. He was, in a way, correct, and he seemed genuinely sorry. Hermione dusted herself off and introduced herself, hoping that her name wasn't considered strange or too muggle. Severus had warned her that there were quite a few prejudiced people amongst the crowds, both at Hogwarts and any other Wizarding community. But if the boy was offended, he didn't show it. In fact, his smile grew even bigger.

"I'm Remus Lupin," he said, "I'm shopping for my first year to Hogwarts. You?"

He was still shy, but nowhere as much as first. Behind her, Lily asked who she was talking to.

"Just a friend," she replied, "Lily, meet Remus. Remus, this is my friend Lily. We'd love to chat, but we're looking for someone. She got lost, see? I don't think she'd handle this place very well, either."

Remus shyly greeted Lily and looked disappointed when Hermione said she'd have to go. After many assurances on her part to talk to each other on the train, Hermione finally left her new acquaintance to go find Petunia.

"Why," exclaimed Lily after the pair had searched the street up and down, "We should have found her by now! You don't think she's left Diagon Alley, have you?"

Hermione frowned. It was a possibility, but they were only eleven and a trip through London was still a tad too dangerous for them.

"No, I wouldn't think so. Petunia's smart; she's probably in a shop or something. No big deal," said Hermione with the entire confidence one her age could muster.

Lily relaxed a bit, mostly because Hermione was rarely ever wrong about anything. So the pair stalked the shops, looking around at all the merchandise as they did so. Lily's favorite was the quidditch supply shop, as she, in a way, was quite the athlete. Hermione was more interested at the small book shop, _Flourish and Blotts_. She had never seen a more exciting and strange assortment of books, and felt confident enough to buy a little light reading with some of the remaining money in her pouch before helping Lily search again. By now they were calmer, but they still felt a sense of dread whenever they found a shop Petunia wasn't in.

"Maybe we should head back before Mum and Dad get worried," said Lily.

Hermione frowned but nodded none the less. She was getting tired, and they still had a full day of shopping ahead. They had already been gone for about an hour, and Gilbert Evans was the paranoid kind. Slowly, as not to tire themselves any further, they made their way back to the pub, not anxious to see the disappointed faces of their companions. When they got there, however, a bleary eyed Laura was reprimanding an embarrassed and unwilling Petunia. As soon as she saw both Lily and Hermione, she jumped from her chair and hugged them tightly around the waist.

"You were gone for so long," She said, "I was getting worried. Don't you ever do that. You shouldn't have run off like that!"

But to them, it was a lot nicer and less malevolent than it was to Petunia. Laura had genuinely been scared for their safety, and it touched Hermione deeply. Without hesitation, she hugged her new mother figure tightly around the waist.

"Thank you," she choked out, and everyone knew it was for more than that day.

* * *

The next place they went was Flourish and Blotts, and Hermione guiltily admitted that she had already purchased a book.

"Well, Kiddo," said Gilbert, "Can't say I'm surprised. Is it an interesting read?"

Hermione beamed and showed him her new prize. It was the biography of Nicholas Flamel, and Gilbert laughed when he saw the sheer size of the tome. If he had to give an honest answer to whom his favorite was, he would have to say Hermione. It wasn't because she was brilliant, or because he didn't love his own children (he adored them and wouldn't trade them for anyone else in the world), but because she had lived through so much and was still able to light up the room with a single smile. It was because she really showed a passion for something. Lily and Petunia, no matter how perfect they tried to be, just didn't show the same appreciation of life as Hermione did. Whereas they saw it as something beautiful that no one could destroy, Hermione knew that it had its fair share of ugly as well.

"So you're excited for the new school year, huh?" he asked.

He already knew the answer to that, as Hermione had always been a notorious book worm. Her answer didn't let him down.

"Oh, absolutely! I cannot wait to meet others like me – or to see the library!"

A sudden look of horror made its way to Hermione's face. For a moment, Gilbert was afraid that she was having a flash back to her parents. She had those sometimes, where she would end up spending the better part of the day crying for her losses. But before he could get any more alarmed, Hermione said something that made him laugh.

"What if they don't have a library?" asked Hermione frantically.

She could do with a change of scenery, and she, even at her young age, would be the first to admit that. But she was _not_, under any circumstances, allowing that change to not involve a library.

"Of course it has a library, silly," said Severus indignantly.

He had been eavesdropping on their conversation (he had never quite gotten over his sneaky ways) and felt the need to reassure his friend.

"The biggest library you will have ever seen," he added as an afterthought.

He smirked when he saw Hermione's eyes go owlish. She had grown up having access to the Viennere library, one that had such a large and vast collection that any library would start to get wary of it. Hermione could already picture it: a home where everyone would be like her, and where she would fit in perfectly. They would all join a book club and talk about the great literary works, and where she would immediately be liked by the teachers instead of scorned for her brilliance. But, still, Hermione had been raised to doubt things.

She crossed her arms and said, "I'll believe it when I see it."

Gilbert laughed as he saw Severus's smirk disappear and the boy himself stalk off to Lily. The three children were rather close, and it was not often that anyone saw Hermione or Severus open and feisty. In a way, the Evans parents felt rather blessed to have met such strange children, especially since they made the lives of their own so much easier. At least, they made Lily's life easier; they only complicated Petunia's.

Petunia had been alright with the Hermione's addition to the family – she had welcomed it with open arms. Severus Snape, however, was a different story. She had grown up hearing stories of strange things, rumors that his family participated in some weird Voodoo tradition. Now that she knew the truth, Petunia found it even harder to accept, and even more so now that both her best friend and sister were said to be part of it, and that it was actually something special that she was just not good enough to be invited to. So she started going over to Marge Dursley's house more and more often, and those two would laugh snidely behind other's backs as Marge's brother, Vernon, would watch.

After having bought the books they needed and dragging Hermione away from the various displays, they made their way to the dreaded robe shop. _Madam Malkin's _was a shop crowded with fabrics and robes on racks. There was little space to really move around, so everybody except for Severus, Lily and Hermione went outside to wait. When they were all gone and Madam Malkin, a stout, middle aged witch of little patience, started taking their measurements immediately.

"You'll have to excuse me for my hurried state, dearies," Madam Malkin said distractedly. "It's been a rather busy day, see?"

The three children made sympathetic sounds. The woman really did seem fatigued, so much so that even Lily kept it to a minimum to make the job easier.

"Why, such easy students you are!" said Madam Malkin, "The teachers will love you three, for sure!"

All three brightened up considerably at this compliment. They had still been a bit sore from lunch, but everything seemed to be a bit better now. After they had been handed their robes and cloaks in a fancy bag, they went outside grinning happily, waving at the busy seamstress as they did so. Outside they were quickly taken to buy their cauldrons and their quills and ingredients for the rest of the year. The quills took a bit longer, mostly because Petunia made a rude comment on the primitive technology of the Wizarding world. After they had done all that, they were pretty much done for the day.

"It still is quite early," said Eileen while looking at her watch, "My brother usually goes for a nap around this time. He always closes up his fireplace when he does. He'll be awake in an hour or so."

Hermione silently wondered who would take a nap at six in the evening, but kept her mouth shut. Now the group was at loss for what to do. They had done everything on the list, excluding broomsticks, as they were still first years.

"Mum, Dad," started Lily nervously, "could we maybe look at the pets?"

The couple sprang into action. It was the perfect thing to do! Besides her parents, Petunia huffed. Hermione knew the Evans house rules: No pets no matter what. Laura and Gilbert decided to make an exception this time, though, as the girls would rarely be home. When the group arrived at the shop, they were immediately met with a small, friendly fellow. He looked kind of mousey, with a shock of bright orange tuft of hair on his otherwise bald head and scrunched up face. As he introduced himself as Paul Pettigrew, it was also noticed his voice was a bit more squeaky than it should be, as if his voice never matured through puberty.

"Welcome, Welcome! Hogwarts students, I suppose?" he asked kindly.

Hermione took the lead and nodded. Before she could make any requests, however, Mr. Pettigrew ushered them to a corner with several cages of diverging sized.

"These are our selection of toads," he said excitedly.

From inside of a small cage, a toad no bigger than a grown man's thumb let out a roar that could rival that of a lion's.

"As you can see," continued Mr. Pettigrew, "we have many assortments of toads. Very exotic species, don't you agree? We even breed some here! In our attic, if you can believe it!"

No one doubted it, just as no one really wanted to get a toad. They all seemed slimy and weird, and one even belched instead of croaked.

"If you don't mind me asking, sir,' said Hermione, "What are the magical properties of a toad?"

Mr. Pettigrew licked his lips before grinning like a mad man.

"Well, they can be very absorbent. Though I do suppose they seem rather slow of wit, they are rather intelligent. Very underestimated, and in that their danger lies. It's almost always the ones you'd least expect to be the more dangerous ones," he said merrily.

In the pit of her stomach, Hermione felt a knot settling. It was the same knot that had settled in her stomach that one fateful New Year's Eve a couple of months back, the one that usually indicated that someone or something was about to die. She often had that feeling, and she often felt it release after something, like a rabbit or a squirrel or even her old neighbor, passed away. Naturally she assumed that one of the frogs was about to breathe it's last breath, so she let it pass, even though she still felt queasy.

Next, Mr. Pettigrew took them to see the cats. These he didn't cage, choosing instead to keep them interested with various scratching posts. With the eagerness of a small child he showed them a bunch of new-born kittens, and one in particular caught Hermione's eye. It was a rather ugly beast, with a face that looked as though someone had thrown the kitten into the wall face first and matted fur a ghastly shade of orange. Hermione wanted to pick it up, even though she was warned that the cat was rather malevolent, but Laura's sneezing made her think twice of it. Laura was allergic to most domestic animals, which was one of the main reasons why her family steered clear of them whenever they could.

"Cats are faithful familiars," explained Mr. Pettigrew, "and very patient. They don't mind waiting for their owners, unless you get a real feisty one like little Crookshanks here."

Laura sneezed some more and everyone decided that it was best that they did not get a cat, even though Crookshanks was, and everyone agreed, rather adorable if you didn't take his lack of handsomeness into perspective.

The most impressive display by far was that of the owls. Dozens of cages littered the ground and hung from the ceiling. Most of the owls hooted at the newcomers in a way Mr. Pettigrew explained was their way of greeting.

"Owls are in high demand, you know," Mr. Pettigrew explained, "because of their simple beauty and grace, not to mention how useful they are!"

Hermione took a deep breath. The air smelled of owl pellets and of faint traces of blood and rotting flesh. It wasn't the most welcoming, and had she been blind, Hermione would've certainly turned her back to the birds and gone back to the cats. But Hermione could see, and the sheer mystic beauty of the owl. Most of them seemed to be tawny owls, which, apparently, were the most high in demand because of their 'cute fuzziness and high energy levels'. Lily immediately fell in love with a small, round, and rather lazy looking female tawny owl, which she named Gaia on the spot. Her reason for it was that the owl was round, like the earth. Hermione found the logic to be amusing, but kept on looking. She was searching for a special sort of bond, but could find it with no bird.

"Ah, but you like the feisty ones, don't you," joked Mr. Pettigrew.

He took Hermione to the back of the shop, where he took out one of the bigger cages. In that cage, there was a sleek Barn Owl. Barn Owls were common enough, but this one seemed to radiate more than the others, a sense accented by the fact that the feathers were shinier and it's body sleeker. It looked like he came from an ancient painting on a temple or in a palace. There were a couple of spots on its white belly, and the owl seemed tense, as if it would need to spread his richly colored wings and fly away any second from them.

"This one was a real catch," said Mr. Pettigrew, "a young male. Won't listen to me or my wife. Almost clawed my son's eyes out when he came near, mind you. He hasn't really been tamed yet. A bit of a wild card if you asked me."

Hermione frowned and stepped a little closer. The owl, which had previously kept both eyes shut, now leisurely opened one. The eyes were a shocking shade of hazel, with sharp black pupils on the inside. The owl didn't hoot (Mr. Pettigrew later explained that Barn Owls don't hoot, but screech), and instead blinked twice. Feeling more confident now that the owl hadn't tried to bite her fingers off yet, Hermione reached out into the cage and stroked the bird twice on its back. Looking at the exchange, Mr. Pettigrew looked like he wanted to clap and do a little victory dance.

"Why, I think we've found a match! You'll have to train him, though… and he _is _still unpredictable, so I might want to give you discount for that," he said.

And he did. Lily paid the full six galleons for her owl, and Hermione got a discount of forty percent, paying nine galleons and three sickles for her owl instead of the full sixteen galleons. Severus ended up deciding to buy a cat and, because he saw how much Hermione favored it, he bought Crookshanks. The kitten liked him well enough, so he didn't really mind at all. As they walked home, everyone but Petunia chattered animatedly about their day. She was still sore from the verbal beating she had received in public, and felt more bitter towards her sister and friend with each passing moment. Later that day, she would have a very deep talk to Marge Dursley about how 'disturbed' and 'strange' her sisters were, and she would revel in the attention she got from Vernon.

"Blimey, 'Mione," said Severus after they made it to the Leaky Cauldron, "You got a real good price for that owl. It's unfortunate that you have to train him before anything, though."

Hermione agreed at the first statement, but not at the latter.

"It'll be fun, and a good way to bond. I'm telling you, Sev, in no time my owl will be the most loyal familiar on the planet," she said proudly.

"Maybe, but for now I think you should just give him a name and let him get used to that," said Lily wisely.

Hermione felt like hitting herself, not having named her new owl already. But when she raised the cage to look her new companion in the eye, she couldn't think of any suitable name. How does one name an owl, anyway? Hermione thought of a couple of names. She could name it Leroy, or Leopold, but those weren't at all fitting. So she decided to take the mythological path. Wizards were big on ancient names of heroes and important historical figures, and maybe it would be better to try to fit in to that. But still no name came to mind, and Hermione decided to leave it until she got home.

"Sorry, my friend," said Hermione, "but I think my brain has had enough for today."

And it wasn't until later that night, when she was lying in her bed looking out her window while Lily was reading, that it came to her. It was the way the moon gave light to his feathers, the way his eyes seemed to outshine the stars. It was how he was everything the night was not; he felt safe, content.

"Why, I do think your name is Apollo," she whispered secretively to the owl.

She was answered by a slight ruffle of feathers, which was more than yes enough for her.

* * *

September first was hectic. Petunia didn't want to come along to King's Cross Station, as she would be starting school herself the next day, but her parents made her comb her hair and dress for the occasion. Because they didn't own a car, Eileen and Severus tagged along with the Evans family. It was a tight fit, but with a little help of Eileen's magic, all the school trunks and people fit comfortably. Though they had all woken up relatively early, no one was tired and everyone was fumbling nervously, except for Eileen.

"You seem worried, child," said Eileen when she saw Hermione twirl an abused lock of hair between her fingers.

"I want to make a good impression," said Hermione.

Even though her person was panicking, Hermione's voice rarely ever strayed from the calm monotonous tone it had adapted after her parents died. To her, panic and pain and sorrow resulted in sympathy, and sympathy robbed you of your dignity, or so she thought.

"Don't worry, Herms," said Severus, "You'll be everyone's favorite, I'm sure of it!"

By this time they had arrived at the station, and Eileen was leading the way to platform 9 and ¾ as she knew where it was.

"I've been here before, you know," said Severus nonchalantly as they arrived in front of a brick wall, "When Uncle Scabior took cousin Scabior to his first year. That was last year."

Both Lily and Hermione were confused before remembering that Scabior was a traditional name in the Prince family, and that every eldest son gave it to his eldest son to keep it going.

"Does he write you a lot about Hogwarts?" asked Lily.

Severus shook his head. Apparently he and his cousin didn't get along too well, and they didn't converse often.

"Oh well. It's probably because he's afraid that you'll do better than he ever would be able to," said Hermione.

"No, I don't think so," said Severus, "Scabior doesn't really care about his grades. Most of them are still good, anyway. _He _doesn't need to try. Much like you guys."

After that, they stopped talking for a while, instead focusing on the task ahead of them. Hermione and Lily thought that they had to tap their new wands, kept carefully in their pockets, in a pattern and that the wall would form a wall, like in Diagon Alley. No one expected Eileen and Severus to say that they had to walk through it.

"But it's a wall!" exclaimed Petunia.

Eileen, who had never really liked Petunia, said, "Of course it's a wall. And I did not stumble over my words. We have to walk through the wall to get to the Hogwarts Express."

Lily asked, "Will it hurt?"

Eileen shook her head, but no one knew if it was in disdain or to say _no, silly, of course it won't hurt_.

"It'll be easier if you take it at a running pace, or at least that's what Scabior tells me," said Severus.

Hermione nodded and watched as Severus took off in a sprint and disappeared behind the wall. Suddenly excited again, Hermione volunteered to go next. Deciding not to go at it from a dead sprint (she had faithfully learned all three of Newton' Laws of Motion, and knew inertia would not go easy on her, nor would gravity), Hermione jogged her way through the wall with her eyes closed. She didn't stop jogging until a laughing Severus told her she had passed the wall fifty feet ago, and that everyone was across now, too.

Severus joked that, "Surely a genius such as yourself should have been able to do that in a jiffy!"

Everyone laughed at that, except for Petunia. She had woken up roughly and was not feeling well, on top of everything else.

Not able to take it anymore, she all but screamed, "Will you _stop it_? You are not perfect! Neither you or my sister is, so stop acting like you are! You're nothing but a freak! A dirty, useless _freak! _No wonder your parents died – I wouldn't be surprised if they did it on purpose!"

Everybody was shocked, but none more so than Lily, who bit her lip hard as not to cry. Hermione herself would've been able to take the blow if not for the last statement and the fact that they were in public, and everyone was starting to stare. Behind them, the Hogwarts Express, which no one had been able to admire before Petunia's outburst, blew its whistle.

"We have to go now," said Hermione.

Her voice never changed from that low droning tone, even though she had started allowing small bursts of emotion seep through it. Now, however, as Hermione and her friends made their way on board, dark thoughts would make it so that it would stay cold for many years to come.

* * *

**And that's it! Sorry for the late update (Haha, that rhymes), but I've been busy with finals and the end of the school year. Anyway, if you see any inconsistencies, just tell me. About the wands, I gave them different wands than described in the book, either because Rowling didn't reveal the type or, in Hermione's case, because I wanted to give her a different personality. By the way, those are real measurements etc. (I used Olivander's notes on Pottermore to choose all the wands. From now on, every wizard I write will get a wand type, because it usually indicates the personality. Trust me, I've read through all the wand woods and all that shit). If you want to find more information, just go on Pottermore if you have an account. If you don't and you really want to know more about why I chose these specific measurements and types, just ask. **

**Also, I know I droned on quite a bit about Petunia and her reluctance, but I really wanted to build up to the last moment. I guess the animal shop was also a bit too detailed for some, but I wanted to establish a real bond between Hermione and something strong and trustworthy as Apollo (Apollo will act as a therapy of sorts for Hermione). And yes, Paul Pettigrew is really Peter's dad, and I'm sorry that he might come across as a bit of a creeper to some…. Hehe… but he's supposed to really be a nice guy. To be honest, I think Peter was a nice guy before he went through the same ordeal as Petunia did, but I'll elaborate further on that in other chapters. **

**And last, but not least, I made Scabior Severus's cousin (Okay… it's really hard to remember him as Severus and not Snape), and have a sort of family tradition. I really thought his character was interesting in the book, and maybe I want to elaborate on him, too. **

**Okay, I lied. THIS WILL BE THE LAST THING! I know author's notes can be boring as hell, but I think that they're just as important, too. I mean, even I sometimes decide to skip the notes, but then it turns out I missed something important and the next chapter I'm like, **_**eh? **_

**Thanks, **

** RedRoses130 **

**P.s.- any questions that can be answered will be answered for all to see. **

**P.p.s. -** To Ashies**, did that fix it? Sorry, those things keep on happening to me, where I just want to get it done and I just randomly start going through to my next train of thought. Thanks for telling me though!**


	3. Swimming and Chocolate Frogs

**Whoop, whoop! Chapter three, my little kiddies! I've got a nice little idea for Christmas vacation in this fic! It's gonna be extremely cozy! At the end of this chapter, and all the other chapters to come, there will be a tiny little questionnaire. It's based on a fan fiction author (check out **_**the Last Marauder **_**by Resa Aureus**_**)**_**, who always does it. Anyway, on to chapter three! **

**To Answer Reviews: **

_**Silver Doe 3 **_**asked: **You won't probably tell but the couple who gave up Hermione are wizards or even grown up Hermione herself?

_**My answer: **_**It's a good question, really, and I **_**will **_**end up telling you eventually. Don't worry! Hehe. It's all part of the plot! But I can tell you this; I don't think it's biologically possible for Hermione to give birth to herself. **

_**Jujulicia **_**asked: **When Hermione will realize that it is the future, I think more pro end of your fic, right?

_**My answer**_**: I don't really understand the question, but I do have the ending of the story mapped out. It'll be interesting for sure! **

_**Jujulicia **_**asked: **I saw you commenting on a pair Hermione/Abraxas, but were you talking about this story? If yes, would Abraxas be Lucius' younger brother?

_**My answer**_**: Whoops, I'm sorry if I caused any confusion, but I was talking about a possible idea for another fic. That one would be very different from this current time. Also, your English is quite admiral! **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, **

**RedRoses130 **

* * *

Chapter Three 

While searching a compartment in the Hogwarts Express, no one in the trio was in the mood for conversation. Part of Hermione thought this was immensely unfair, as all three of them were excited to go to Hogwarts, but the other part of Hermione felt like scratching the next person who interrupted her sulking. Eventually, after having searched the whole length of the train, Severus nervously spoke.

"There's no more empty compartments. I suppose we'll have to find one to share," he said.

Hermione, feeling slightly guilty for dragging Severus into her 'emotional pit of doom', as she had taken to call her darkest mood, nodded eagerly. Next to her, Lily let out a silent sniffle. Though she didn't want to show it, Petunia's public scorn had brought her much more embarrassment and overall dread than she wanted to admit.

"Didn't you have a cousin in Second Year? Scabior, I think it was?" she asked.

Severus shuddered and said, "I don't reckon you two will like him much. I know _I _don't like him." He replied.

Hermione and Lily dragged themselves out of their stupor enough to send Severus their 'I'm confused, explain, please' look. Severus fiddled with his sleeve and shuffled on his feet.

"He got a bit mad when some of my accidental magic hit him a couple of years back, see? He's never been quite the same to me since. I don't blame him – if I had been sent to bed with green colored skin, I'd have been angry, too."

Hermione and Lily laughed, momentarily forgetting about Petunia. They were eager to be pleased, and a laugh was always the best remedy for eleven year olds.

"I can't say I'm surprised, Sev," grinned Lily, "I'm just wondering how long he stayed green for!"

Hermione erupted into another fit of giggles, opening a compartment door with her left hand, seeing as in her right she held Apollo.

"You _have _always been quite brilliant, Sev," agreed Hermione, "I'm sure that the accident couldn't have been removed for at least a week."

Severus, at Hermione's mark of approval, looked slightly more proud when he replied that it had, in fact, taken two weeks for the magic to wear off.

"Oy, something funny over there?" asked a boy about Hermione's age.

With a start, Hermione remembered that she had opened a compartment door. Smiling in what she hoped to be a nice and totally non-awkward way, she surveyed the room. There were only three people that were occupying the whole space of the compartment, when there was room enough to fit at least six grown men. The three people, who Hermione noticed to be boys, were barely any bigger than Severus. She scrutinized them more closely, not realizing that she was starting to stare. There was one boy next to the window and so Hermione couldn't really see any details. She did, however, notice that his robes were slightly too big for him. He had sandy brown hair, and his lips were set in a permanently tense line. For one so young, Hermione thought he had one frown line too many. She vaguely remembered seeing him at Diagon Alley, and him introducing himself as Remus. The other two boys were more carefree, looking relaxed as they questioned their intruders. The boy who had addressed Hermione, Lily and Severus had his arms crossed. He was wearing black-rimmed glasses that slid slightly down his narrow nose, and his hazel colored eyes were narrowed down to slits while his black, floppy hair fell freely into his eyes. He had a full face that ended in a rather pointy chin, which was accented by his high cheekbones and clear complexion. The boy opposite him was more laid back, his long legs stretched across one whole bench. His face was more angular, more refined in certain ways from the other boys. His nose, which was also narrow, pointed slightly upward at the end, giving him a slightly arrogant look. He had rather thin lips to accompany his nose, and they were set in a fixed smirk. His eyes, however, toned good humor in their grey depths, but also certain wariness. His complexion, like the other boy, was rather pale, and his cheekbones impressively high. Though Hermione found the three boys looking slightly gawky, her mother would have probably commented on how symmetrical their features were, and how handsome they would be in a couple of years. But what really caught the girl's attention was how the second boy's long black hair messily fell into his eyes, almost as if he had done so on purpose. She had seen that sort of hair only several times, both that day in Olivander's shop.

"It's _you,_" said Hermione accusingly. "We saw you in Olivander's!"

The boy's face lit up with recognition and he grinned a wide, face splitting grin. Hermione noticed he had naturally straight, white teeth, and she did so rather enviously. She was willing to bet _he _hadn't needed to use any magic. Next to Hermione, Lily, who had been introducing the trio to the boys in the compartment, huffed in annoyance at the interruption. The boy leapt up with an agility that surprised Hermione, and held out his hand.

"You're the girl with the fifty rejected wands, aren't you?" he asked. "I'm Sirius Orion Black."

With lots of flourish, he grabbed Hermione's free hand and kissed it lightly. She was not used to such open displays, as she had never been fond of them. Even Lily, her family and Severus had to keep the affectionate hugging to a minimum unless Hermione herself initiated it. She quickly retracted her hand, surprising the boy. He straightened himself and she saw a small frown form its way onto his brow.

"Eh, I'm Hermione," she quickly said. "And it was definitely _not _fifty! For your information, it took only another fifteen minutes before my wand chose me after you left!"

The boy with the hazel eyes snorted, even though his arms were still crossed. He, unlike Sirius, made no attempt to get better acquainted with the new kids. Sirius sat back down, but this time he left enough room for Hermione, Lily and Severus to sit. Hermione and Lily, both rather short for their age, could only just brush the floor with their toes when sitting properly. Severus nodded towards the two boys sitting opposite.

"I'm Severus Snape," he said eagerly.

Both Lily and Hermione knew how badly Severus wanted to make himself be known to the rest of Wizarding society. He had proudly told his two friends how his mother had won tons of prizes when she was younger. Lily had, on countless late nights spent secretly talking under the covers of her bed with her adoptive sister, stressed Hermione on how the Snape family could have been doing so much better. They both knew the force holding the family back, though; they had overheard Laura and Gilbert speaking in hushed tones of Severus's father, Tobias Snape. Most days he spent in the town's pub, drinking away Eileen's money. He had no job of his own, and Severus, before meeting Lily and Hermione, had spent his days in his house, trying to take care of it so that his mother wouldn't have to. He hadn't told his friends he did this, and he never would have, but Hermione and Lily had accidentally witnessed him dusting the furniture and humming as he did so. Needless to say, both girls had kept quiet about it to Severus's face. Eileen Prince herself was an honest, hardworking woman, albeit a little cold to strangers. And although she loved her little boy more than words could say, she worked so hard every day that she had not the time to introduce her son to anyone, let alone a whole group of people.

"Snape, eh?" said Sirius, "I've heard 'bout your folks from Mum. Say, James, Remus and I were just talking about which of the Houses we'd want to end up in. I reckon I'll be in Slytherin – my whole family is in Slytherin, see? But I'm gambling on Gryffindor myself."

Severus sat a little straighter and dusted off his pants from any imaginary lint that might have ended up on his clothing. Severus had always been immaculate, and nothing would change that.

"I'm hoping for Slytherin. It's the best – either that, or Ravenclaw. The rest is for buffoons and for nobodies." Said Severus.

Lily cringed at the coldness in Severus's tone. Slytherin had been beaten into the boy by his father, but Hermione seemed unfazed. Sometimes, when her parents had received colleagues in their home, they would act cold to her, too. She knew it wasn't their fault; they had just been brought up a certain way or made to believe a certain thing. They couldn't help themselves.

"Slytherin is full of evil Wizards," said the hazel eyed boy distastefully. "Nothing but muggle-hating bastards, if you ask me."

His narrow, sculptured nose was scrunched up as if he smelled something rancid. Part of Hermione found his language to be quite distasteful. So far she wasn't liking the boy, who she supposed was James.

"Oi, watch it! My whole family's been in Slytherin!" said Sirius. "But I guess your right – if they could, my parents would hang the heads of every muggle they've bested on the wall, just below the old House-Elves."

Lily gasped. She did not know about House-Elves or what they did, but that did not concern her in the least. To her, they sounded like the most innocent things in the world, and no doubt she had a version of Santa's Elf in her mind.

"Your parents kill muggles and elves?" she asked, horrified.

Sirius laughed and made a calming notion with his hands. He had long, spidery fingers, and they were, like the rest of him, graceful in all their movements.

"Not quite. At least, not the House-Elves part. Don't your parents give your House-Elves a place of honor?"

Lily cocked her head to the side, letting her hair fall over her shoulder. In a quick moment, Hermione took time to study her friend. Lily was pretty for an eleven year old. She had a long, slender neck that held a heart shaped face. Her facial features were soft, padded with baby fat that she would one day trade in for soft, graceful lines and curves. She had the most beautiful green eyes one could wish for. They were almond shaped and devoid of any trace of malice. She had plump lips and a narrow nose, one of the straightest Hermione had ever seen. Her tan complexion was tainted with a splatter of freckles along her nose and cheeks, but everyone thought it just added to her charm. She would never be tall; for both her parents were rather short, but Hermione knew Lily would be a knockout one day in the near future. As for herself, Hermione knew not. She spent many a day looking at herself in the mirror, which had Petunia calling her vain. Hermione wasn't particularly striking. She honestly thought her best features were her shoulders and neck, which she usually covered up because she was, after all, only eleven. She didn't have eyes as noticeable as Lily, and she had always been rather skinny and hard-edged, especially when it came to her face. She supposed that she had a fair complexion, though it was pasty from all her days spent indoors or in the shade rather than on the playground. Her teeth, after the incident with the Dursleys, were thankfully straight and pearly, and she had a pair of thin, rosy lips to cover them with. Her nose was straight for the most part, but turned slightly upward. Though she'd normally not give a marshmallow if someone cared for her appearance, Hermione felt so plain in this train compartment compared to its other inhabitants, who all looked like they belonged to some royal family. Even Severus would look handsome if he went through a thorough scrubbing, and Hermione knew that. In fact, James, Sirius and even Severus looked as if they were related in some way.

"Surely," said Hermione after a pause, "Surely, not _all _Slytherins could be bad."

James seemed to ponder this.

"No," he said, "My mum was in Slytherin. That was ages ago, though – quite a lot has happened since she last stepped into Hogwarts."

Severus snorted and said, "Nothing has changed. She probably just can't recall it right – Slytherin shall always be more superior in every way. The other lot will never amount to anything, as far as I'm concerned."

James scowled and said, "It's full of a bunch of incestuous, sadistic people with not a truthful bone in their body. Full of pansies, if you ask me!"

Severus sprung up and said, "It's better than being lodged in a house full of daft idiots! Is it really worth it to be living amongst people who value spawn over brain?"

Hermione nodded in agreement. Even though she did not like the malignant tone in her friend's voice, she saw the point Severus was trying to make. Unfortunately, James and Sirius saw her approval as somewhat of an attack.

"So you," said James, pointing at Hermione, "Would rather be part of a house that discriminates and is known neither for their brawn _or _brain?"

Surprised that she was being included in the conversation, Hermione spluttered out a defensive reply.

"I would rather be part of a house that sees logic, and therefore I'm trying for Ravenclaw. And besides, it seems like Slytherin isn't the only house that discriminates!" She exclaimed.

Next to James, Remus started shifting uncomfortably. Hermione realized he must be the type of guy who didn't have enough confidence to talk like this to mere strangers. Suddenly feeling petty and remorseful, Hermione stood up.

"I think that we'll be finding another compartment, thanks," she said icily.

Lily wasted no time in standing up also. She didn't enjoy arguments unless she held the upper hand, and as she didn't know a lot about the Wizarding world, felt as though she had the lowest hand in the history of fights. Severus opened the compartment door and, struggling with both Crookshanks' kitty holder and his trunk, slammed the compartment door. Inside the apartment, Hermione heard the boys laughing in what she imagined to be a victorious way.

* * *

When they had settled into a compartment, Hermione patted Severus on the back. When he looked at her quizzically, she responded by playfully bumping her shoulder against his.

Lily said, "Those boys were awful. No manners at all!"

Severus readily agreed, satisfied that both his friends backed him on this matter. A squeak came from a dark corner in the compartment, and the three friends were surprised to see a rat like boy appear from the shadows. He was wringing his pudgy small hands, as if he was afraid of something, and his small nose was twitching. With his beady eyes trained on Hermione, he introduced himself.

"I'm Peter Pettigrew," he stammered.

Hermione recognized the last name, and realized that this must have been the son of the pet shop owner.

Hermione said, "Hullo, I'm Hermione. I'm a first year – and you?"

In his cage, Apollo screeched, and Peter pressed back into the corner, cowering in fright.

Peter said, "Keep him away from me, please!"

Hermione hurriedly put the cage overhead on the baggage rack, silently apologizing to Apollo for the inconvenience. In response, Apollo snapped the air several times before turning his back on his owner. When she had secured her bird, Hermione turned back to Peter. Normally she would've snapped at a person for being so inconveniently scared, but she felt childish enough for the other fight. So instead she forced a smile on her face, though it felt fake even to her.

"Better?" She asked.

Peter nodded and said, "That blasted bird nearly scratched my eyes out last time I met him. And I was just trying to feed him, I swear!"

Hermione raised a skeptical eyebrow. Obviously, if the boy was making such a big deal about feeding a bird, there must've been more to the story.

But she only said, "Oh, to me he has been quite lovely, really. Besides just then, he did not show any malevolent feelings. Maybe birds just don't like you."

Peter shook his head frantically. In his mind, birds were simple creatures no matter what his father told him, and they shouldn't be able to just _like _somebody. Hermione cleared her throat and introduced Severus and Lily, the latter of whom greeted Peter with an astounding amount of energy. They all settled back down, and while the others were holding an easy conversation, Hermione opened Charles Darwin's first book, _On the Origin of Species_. It was a relatively interesting read, and it amused Hermione to think of the severe reactions people must have had to the publication. She was in the middle of imagining a poor old woman fainting at the news when a short, rather stout woman walked by their compartment.

The woman asked, "Do you want anything from the cart, dearies?"

She was pushing a trolley filled to the brim in what Hermione assumed were goods such as candy and cakes. If she were to be honest, neither she nor Lily had actually packed a lunch. Severus had advised them to do so, as they would be traveling for quite some time, but the girls had rejected his suggestion thinking that there would be a great feast when they arrived at Hogwarts. But now Hermione was thoroughly hungry, and she saw that Lily was, too. She had enough money in her brown leather pouch, at least thirty galleons. The pouch, with her initials carved skillfully in the soft hide, had been a gift from Auntie Rossum for her fifth birthday.

"Five of each, please," she said, dangling the pouch from one of the cords keeping closed.

The witch manning the trolley grinned a toothy grin, and Hermione noticed that the woman was missing one of her front teeth, and that the rest were blackened by what she assumed were harming substances such as coffee and cigarettes. Normal people wouldn't have noticed even that, let alone the first signs of wrinkles around the eyes, or the slight whiskers forming uneven patches on the woman's pale skin. But Hermione did; she had been raised to. She noticed these things even if she didn't want to.

"Blimey!" Exclaimed Severus when he saw the amounts of candy the witch was collecting.

Hermione realized a little too late that the trolley was magical, and that there must have been a bunch more levels to it than there seemed. The four children watched with big eyes as the pile just kept growing and growing until the witch happily requested fifteen galleons for the bunch. Stunned, Hermione counted out the amount she needed and was still too shocked to care that she had lost half of her money. It was only when she realized Severus was already reaching for the candy that she snapped out of her reverie.

Slapping her friend's hand away she said, "Not yet. Not until you tell me what all of this actually is."

And that led to a large discussion between Peter and Severus, whether Chocolate Frogs were actually good treats to give to children. Whereas Snape said that they were brilliant, Peter argued that they gave children the wrong message about how they could treat animals. To prove his point, he passionately told the tale of when a little boy came in and mistook one of the smaller, browner toads to be a Chocolate Frog. It ended, of course, with a sick child and one less toad to sell. Blanching, Hermione and Lily decided to pass on the chocolates, to which Severus just shrugged.

"More for me," he said, examining the Chocolate Frog Card he got.

He wrinkled his nose, saying he had already acquired it the week before, when Eileen had brought him back a Chocolate Frog. He handed it to Hermione, who took the strange card and looked it over. Below a picture of a regal, ethereal woman with a heart shaped face, it said:

_Queen Maeve _

_Trained young sorcerers in Ireland prior to the establishment of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. _

It touched Hermione that Severus thought she'd enjoy it. And Hermione really did enjoy it; Queen Maeve was looking at Hermione with curious, caramel colored eyes. Thinking about it, Severus thought there were many similarities between Queen Maeve and Hermione. Both had slightly frizzy hair, and both had caramel colored eyes filled with knowledge. If he didn't know any better, he'd say they were actually _related_. He laughed at the thought and Lily looked at him as if he was being an idiot. He shrugged it off and ate another Chocolate Frog.

* * *

Hermione couldn't swim. It was her deepest, darkest secret, which only Lily and Petunia knew about. She had told them three years prior to the Hogwarts letter, when all was still well between the three and they considered themselves sisters. Not even Severus knew that she couldn't swim. She couldn't even doggy paddle, and that compared to Lily's purposeful grace in the water made her extra conscious to be standing next to her when this big giant of a man was forcing them into boats. If the boat sank, she would be sure to sink with it, especially in these thick, heavy ropes. Severus had told her that the man was the Groundskeeper of Hogwarts, and had been for at least thirty years.

"Are yer okay?" Asked the Groundskeeper.

"Picture perfect!" squealed Hermione.

"It's just," she whispered, "I can't swim."

The man let out a big guffaw, but quieted when he noticed Hermione was glaring at him.

"Aye, these waters look a bit fishy, but the Giant Squid is nice, really. She has bit o' a soft spot for marshmallows." He replied.

Hermione let out a shrill cry at the mention of a giant squid. Amongst other things, Hermione shared no appreciation for sushi. The Groundskeeper realized he had said something wrong.

Hastily he said, "But ye three can come in my boa'. Nothin' oughta happen with me there."

That subdued Hermione, and she clumsily climbed in one of the wooden boats with Lily, Severus and the Groundskeeper. Ahead of them, the castle stood stoically, a beacon in the otherwise dark night. Both Hermione and Lily thought it was breathtaking, a place where they could finally fit in. Severus thought it was beautiful, too, but he knew he would fit in – he was just looking forward to more friends and creating a good repertoire for himself.

"I'm Hermione, by the way," she said after she had made sure that the little boat wasn't going to topple over.

It was a strange sort of boat; it seemed like just a normal row boat from the first glance, except for the fact that it didn't have any oars. Even then, however, Hermione was extremely surprised when it listened to the Groundkeeper's every direction. She was forced to admit that she did not know anything about the magical world or its boundaries, but she found herself not minding that at all.

The Groundskeeper said, "Eh! 'Ermione is a mou' full, 'ats for sure. I'm 'Agrid."

Fluttering with optimism for the year to come, Lily and Severus introduced themselves. They were practically jumping up and down with nerves.

Shouting, Hagrid said, "HEADS DOWN!"

Hesitating only slightly, the trio did as they were told, and a newly terrified Hermione squealed as Hagrid bent down also. Because of his sheer size – Hermione and Lily only came up to his waist in length – the whole boat shook and wobbled, and Hermione dove to hug Severus around the waist, the latter of whom blushed profusely and sputtered while Hermione buried her face in his robes. When they were told they could sit normally again, Lily burst out laughing.

"Oi, that's not funny! Hermione sinks like a rock in the water – I doubt I'd have kept us afloat. Blimey, Hermione, I've seen you swim. It's a disaster!" Accused Severus.

Hermione blushed down to the roots of her hair. Severus was _not_ supposed to know that she couldn't swim to save her life.

"No one ever had the time to teach me!" Whispered Hermione furiously. "And WHEN did you see me swimming, anyway?"

Severus said, "When you fell into Lover's Creek. By Merlin, I almost jumped in after you when you didn't come up after ten minutes! Pure luck that your neighbor was walking his dog when he did."

He shrugged like it was nothing, but Hermione's brain was racking for a memory. It had been such a bad memory that she had blocked it. But there was no mistaking it; the winter before she and Lily had met Severus was a particularly cold and slippery one, and she had gone back to the creek because Petunia had left her scarf and didn't want to go back again. Slipping on a particularly icy patch of matted snow, the then-ten-year-old took a tumble into the ice cold creek. The fact that she couldn't even float combined with the weight of her multiple layers of clothing dragged the girl down to the near bottom of the water. Had her old grump of a neighbor's Labrador not jumped into the water to 'fetch' her, she was sure to have become a Popsicle. For days afterward, Petunia apologized to a blue lipped, shivering Hermione. It was one of those sister moments to which all three girls would look back on wistfully.

Huffing, Hermione said, "I thought I heard someone cackling evilly behind the bushes."

"Not me. I was up in the oak," he declared.

Before they knew it, they had arrived. They entered a large iron gate, and when they arrived at the castle's large, heavy wooden doors they were met by a tall, stern looking woman. She was dressed in a dark green robe, with a large pointed hat on. Her small spectacles made her gaze seem even sharper than they would have normally, and Hermione decided that Medusa would've had exactly those penetrating eyes; dismal enough to turn someone into stone.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," Said the woman stiffly. "Now, in a few moments you will pass through these doors and join your classmates, but before you take your seats, you must be sorted into your Houses. They are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Now while you're here, your House will be like your family. Your triumphs will earn you points. Any rule breaking and you will lose points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup."

Hermione thought this rather straight to the point, something she rather admired in an adult. The professor sounded as if the speech had been rehearsed several times in the mirror. Before she could have a chance to dwell on it again, the professor made a come-hither motion with her finger, demanding that they follow her, which they did. A group of fifty or so eleven years followed the woman, and into a hall they were lead. All the other students were already seated, talking loudly and laughing at their friends. There were five tables in the room. Four of them were equally long, and held at least sixty students each. One thing Hermione noticed was that all the students at one particular table wore the same exact uniform colors as their peer; red and gold, blue and silver, yellow and black, or sliver and green. The fifth table, which stood at the back of the room, seated only a dozen men and women of varying ages, but most over the thirty. They were smiling and nodding at the students, sometimes frowning at them if they got too rough. In front of the four student tables there was a stool, and on that stool there was a rather beaten up hat, made from tearing leather. _Oh, poor hat_, thought Hermione sympathetically, _I think you've taken just about your last breath_.

A girl behind Hermione said, "Look at the ceiling!"

Hermione did, even though the statement wasn't particularly aimed at her. As luck would have it, James was standing right in front of her. He looked back to see who had spoken and was amused to see Hermione staring at the ceiling, which was currently mirroring a smooth, moonless night. It was illuminated by hundreds upon hundreds of floating candles.

"It's enchanted to look like whatever the weather is outside," he explained.

Hermione knew that already, as she had read a copy of _Hogwarts: A history _Severus had given her several times already. But this boy, who had acted so despicably towards her on the train, was actually being nice, and Hermione knew she shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.

"I didn't know it was this clear outside," she replied.

James smiled and, shaking his head good naturedly, turned back to stare ahead. For the rest of the ceremony the boy stood tall, rocking gently on the balls of his feet. Behind her, Lily cleared her throat. She didn't approve of her best friend talking to the boy that had made her other best friend so miserable. Hermione lightly shrugged her shoulders and clasped her hands in front of her. She was quietly anticipating the first name to be called, wondering how it would set the mood for the rest. The order seemed to go first name alphabetical, or else she would've been near last. Now she was in the middle, with everyone having diverse names. But instead of people being told which house they would be in (Hermione had read about something called the _Sorting Hat_, but she just couldn't wrap her head around it, and Severus was of no use at all), the old leather hat on the stool began singing. The cuts Hermione had previously thought to give it a ragged, worn countenance opened to reveal an endless black background to them, as if there was endless amount of storage space. With its deep, raspy voice, the hat sang:

_Oh, another year is coming, _

_And with it another sorting. _

_Oh, you may not think me charming, _

_But for charm I have no need. _

_I am the Hoggy-Hogwarts Sorting Hat, _

_And the smartest hat around for miles to see! _

_Let me take a look inside of you, _

_And I will find you your home. _

_Whether it's among Gryffindor, _

_For the brave, the chivalrous, and the daring, _

_Or might you be a Ravenclaw, _

_One with wit and smarts. _

_Or do you belong with humble Hufflepuff, _

_Where the kind and loyal dwell, _

_Or even Slytherin, _

_For the cunning of mind and heart! _

_So put me on (I don't bite), _

_And on this night _

_I shall be the voice of reason, _

_And of your future. _

Hermione wrinkled her nose in contempt; the song wasn't really anything to go by. It was actually a bit weak, and after the initial shock of having a talking hat wore off, it wasn't anything very special. _If this is the best the hat can do,_ she thought, _I'd rather not have it decide my future, no matter how bad I feel for its rugged, not at all charming appearance, thankyouverymuch!_ It was needless to say that if the music at Hogwarts was going to be like this, that she'd really miss Beatles Week this year. The first one to be called was a rather skinny girl with pigtails and buck teeth. Her uniform was slightly large on her, which resulted in a scrawny looking appearance. With a boomingly and impressively loud voice, the Sorting Hat declared her to belong with the Hufflepuffs, who cheered loudly when their newest member came and sat with them. Peter was third, and he took a full three minutes to get sorted. His beady black eyes lingered on the Slytherin table, and Hermione was reminded of what his own father had warned her about: _'Very underestimated, and in that their danger lies. It's almost always the ones you'd least expect to be the more dangerous ones'_. Finally, after a couple more seconds of tense waiting, he was sorted into Gryffindor. When it was Sirius's turn, as the sixteenth, everyone was surprised when the hat almost immediately ordered him to the Gryffindor table, where he was met with welcoming slaps on the shoulder. But it was Lily's turn Hermione was really anticipating. Standing up as straight as she could, the fiery redhead came no higher than Professor McGonagall's elbow. The hat just barely grazed her head before shouting out a merry Gryffindor. For four more Sortings, Hermione could relax a bit and calm her nerves. How she wished she could have some tea! How she wished she could just get the Sorting over with!

"Gryffindor!" the Hat said upon James's head of unruly black locks.

The boy winked mischievously at Hermione before sauntering off to where Sirius sat with a wide smile. Walking with straight, purposeful strides to the stool upon which the now silent accessory rested, Hermione concentrated fully into which Houses would be the most beneficial. Certainly she wouldn't mind staying wherever Lily was placed, but Severus had clearly made a valid point about the Gryffindors valuing brawn over brain. Severus wanted to be in Slytherin, she knew, but when Hermione looked over to the Slytherin table she found that not one student was remotely interested in her Sorting. Ravenclaw was looking at her like an insect, pompously sitting in their chairs and fiddling with their nails while they did so. The only Houses that seemed _willing _to take Hermione were the Hufflepuffs and the Gryffindors.

She put the Hat on quickly, ignoring the snickers as it fell in her eyes. _Ah_, said a voice in her head, _so you've already decided your faith, eh? _Hermione shuddered. The voice was eerie and it held promise of brutal knowledge, as if it knew everyone's secrets. _Not everyone_, the Hat said, _just the ones wearing me. _Hermione took a quick intake of breath. _You want me to put you in Gryffindor, but you do not even belong here, _he said mysteriously. Hermione's mind reeled. She had proven herself to be magical, and she would study hard and diligently. She would be brave and face whoever thought she wasn't ready enough for Hogwarts. She had been brave after her parents had died, and she would be just as brave now. _Hmmmm, interesting. _

"GRYFFINDOR!" Shouted the Hat.

Hermione thought she heard the hat laugh, but Professor McGonagall took it off too fast for her to really be sure. She walked to the Gryffindor table in a daze, automatically finding Lily amidst the crowd. She was given pats on the back and handshakes, and Hermione thought she had never heard so many 'welcome's and 'congratulation's before in her life. She barely noticed Severus saunter over to the Slytherin table.

"Not smart enough for Ravenclaw?" Asked a boy humorously next to her.

Hermione turned and saw that both Sirius and James were looking at her, but she knew that it had been Sirius that had spoken to her. Puffing up her chest proudly, Hermione stared them down the best she could.

"You just wait," she said, "You just wait until I'm declared the brightest witch of the ages, and _then _you can ask me that again."

* * *

When Lily and Hermione had settled themselves down in the girl's dormitories, the first thing they did was jump on the most convenient beds. Hermione chose the one near the window, because then she could get the breezes in the summer. She wasn't all too worried about what winter would have in store for her, but she made a mental note to wear extra warm nighties during those months. Lily, on the other hand, chose the one flanking Hermione's, knowing that she still had a high chance of catching a breeze and not a cold there.

"I think the bed over there is softer, though," said Lily, "This one is rather hard to the touch. Here, feel!"

Hermione gave her friend's bed a good pat and said, "If you say so, Goldie Locks."

Lily stuck out her tongue before returning to a morose state. She fiddled with the sleeve of her bright pink pajamas – which she wore diligently even though Hermione spared no opportunity to tell her it clashed with her bright red hair – and cleared her throat.

"You don't think anything is going to change between us and Sev, right?" She said.

Hermione, in all honesty, did believe it to be so. She wasn't blind; she saw the scowls exchanged between the Gryffindors and Slytherins. But she also wasn't a rock. She saw Lily was vulnerable, and needed a pleasant, positive lie instead of the bleak truth for once.

"Of course not, you silly goose," she replied.

Lily smiled and got under the covers, and Hermione did the same. They left their privacy blinds open, even though there were three other girls in their year. Soon afterwards they fell asleep, each clutching their memories of home.

* * *

_The first thing Hermione noticed was her father's violin, sitting carelessly on the marble table that had been rooted to the floor ever since her birth. It was much more worn than she remembered, the color of the wood faded in several places. The pegs had been replaced, noticeably so to Hermione. In her mind, there was no more gross way of treating the object that she had turned into a relic. In fact, the whole room, which she could walk scale blindly, was the same but had an older, dustier feel to it. But that was not all there was. She felt older, much more experienced. In a window's reflection she saw that the sharp angles of her body had softened a bit, and that she had grown easily. Her flat chest was replaced by small but firm breasts, and she was dressed in a sensible black dress that felt like cotton. Before she could look any closer, though, her attention was diverted by a man. She did not see him closely, only that his voice was deep and his disposition cheerful. Hermione thought she spied a lock of black hair, but she wasn't sure. Everything was so _hazy_, and the man was not in her proper line of vision. It was only then that she noticed herself holding a bundle. It was small, and the folds squirmed. _

"_I guess you won that bet with your brother," said the man. "I don't know how you did it, though; his will is as firm as iron when it comes to these things.' _

_He laughed and Hermione felt herself laughing along with him, as if she agreed with his observation. She was about to see his face clearly when – _

"Hermione, WAKE UP!" Shouted Lily.

Hermione sat up with a start. She hadn't had any dreams like that in years, not since she had met Lily. Had Hogwarts triggered some sort of memory or emotion? This dream was different than the ones that she used to dream, which were vivid to the very last detail. It was as if Hermione could reach out to this dream, to this _vision_, and just rearrange the haziness to something else entirely. Hermione had about a thousand questions racing through her mind. Since when did she have a brother? When did she acquire what she could only presume to be a baby? Who was that mystery man? And most importantly, who treated her father's violin so disgustingly? Even though part of her had already written the dream off as a bogus fantasy, another part of Hermione also wanted to confide it to Lily. No one understood Hermione better than Lily, everybody knew that.

"What time is it?" She asked instead.

* * *

**Challenge: 1. Favorite character so far? 2. Who would you like to see Hermione go with (choose any of the four Marauders)? 3. Favorite part/line? 4. Any predictions for the next chapter? Predictions for the end of the story? **

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**Fun Fact of the day: Every face in our dream is that of someone we know, whether it be a random stranger or the neighbor you were always too scared of holding a conversation with. I suppose our brain is just strange that way. **

* * *

**Okay, I'm seriously conflicted. James/Hermione? Sirius/Hermione? Aaaarghhh, so many conflicting emotions!** **Anyway, I know I have just undoubtedly composed the single worst possible Sorting Hat opening song, but I'm not a troubadour. I can hardly sing or memorize my scales, for crying out loud! But I hoped you enjoyed the chapter (writing at this length is becoming increasingly hard for me!), and I'll try to update soon. I might not, though, because I'm traveling with my family throughout August. **

**Happy Summer Reading, **

**RedRoses130 **

**P.s. - I think I might need to change my pen name. You know, make it sound classier or something. Ignore me, please; I'm starting to blabber. **

**P.P.s – don't ignore this one, please. On my profile you'll find a poll (hopefully) about which male you'd want Hermione to end up with. Even if you do end up voting along with the majority, NOTE THAT I MIGHT STILL OVER RULE IT IF I FEEL THE NEED TO. Feel free to P.M me on any matter of the story!**


	4. The Weeping Child

**Chapter four already! Whoohoo! Anyway, I STILL have to put up the poll, which I thought I had done. Oh well, all in good time, all in good time. Down below you'll find the challenge and the daily fun fact. So don't skip those, haha! **

**Answers to Reviews: **

** Random Female: (Your review wasn't really a question, but I wanted to answer to it, as you don't really have an account I can send a reply to). **

My Response: Thanks for reviewing! You're right; I'm considering looking for a beta. Your sort of review is what I'm looking for in a review on top of the daily challenges, too. It's a pleasure to know that someone is willing to criticize my work in such a kind and constructive way. Thanks again!

**Assiduous** **Dreaming: Ooohh… I hope you won't leave us hung up on Hermione's heritage for too long! (And hopefully she won't be too 'plain' looking :c Please? **

My Response: What I've always liked about the way that Hermione was described was that she wasn't always to hung up on external appearances, and I wanted to really emphasize on that in this story, especially since here she was raised by parents that were more focused on the mental capacity of their child rather than their perception of personal beauty (I'm not really making any sense, am I?). That being said, however, I never really thought Hermione to be plain looking, even though she was described like that by Rowling. I guess I've just always pictured Emma Watson, who I think is very pretty, as Hermione. So don't you worry, ha-ha! As for her parentage, the mystery is going to span over a couple of years (a.k.a. chapters). Thanks for reviewing (and the vacation _was _fun; you were right!).

**To Silver Doe 3**: **(You can see the review in the review section) **

My Response: A very interesting theory, albeit one that I myself did not take advantage of. Lots of people were doing it, so I wanted to try something a little more unique. I've read tons of stories that do actually incorporate that in an interesting way by keeping to that main story line, however I don't think I'm creative enough to do a real spinoff of that.

**To Gabs: It makes more sense for Hermione to befriend him and try to turn him into a better man! **

My Response: You're quite right. However, if Hermione does hate him (which she doesn't, though I'm not going to say whether that won't change in future chapters) it won't be based off of events that happen in the future. Also, she doesn't know she actually has a chance to turn him into someone good; let's just hope she's nice to him!

**Enjoy the chapter! **

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**Chapter Four**

It turned out that tension between Gryffindor and Slytherin was higher than anticipated, and therefore Hermione, Severus and Lily could only fully spend time together during the weekends. They met up after the day's lessons ended, of course, but even then they spent more time studying and completing homework assignments than talking. When they did have the chance to talk, however, Severus always seemed to steer the direction of the conversation to the boys that had been so rude to him in the train compartment. For example, the Monday before Christmas, Hermione was proudly telling him and Lily about how Professor McGonagall, who had quickly become her favorite, had told her that she had high potential to be an animagus. The day was nearing to an end, and all three were standing in a secluded corridor even though they had a potions essay due and it was nearing curfew. Hermione was right in the middle of her tale when Severus interrupted her and said:

'I bet those silly boys wouldn't be able to become animagi!'

Hermione, lips pursed in agitation, asked, "Which silly boys are you going on about now, Sev?"

Of course, both she and Lily knew who he was talking about. James and Sirius, who had quickly become known to the whole school as great prankers, had joined forced with both Peter Pettigrew and Remus. Even though Hermione thought Remus was interesting and none of the other boys really bothered her much she ignored them, and so did Lily. It was a matter of principal; they stuck to their best friend much like those vulgar boys stuck to each other.

"Oh," Said Severus, 'You know who I'm talking about. Those horrid Gryffindor boys! No wonder their House is treated as one for sulking baboons!"

Frowning, Lily said, "Hush, Severus. They haven't done anything _too _bad yet. If it escalates to something life-threatening, just tell Professor Slughorn. I'm sure he'd be willing to sort it all out for you."

"What do you mean, '_if _it escalates to something life threatening'?" screeched Severus. "I'll have you know, a bat-bogey jinx can have quite a serious effect on one if not performed correctly."

Hermione snorted and shook her head, bringing the palm of her hand up to her forehead in mock disappointment. She kept at that pose for a minute or two before draping an arm supportively over Severus.

"Don't worry, Sev," she said, "In a week it'll be Christmas, and we'll go home to our families. It'll be as if we've got not one care in the world, I promise. Everything will be alright."

Severus was satisfied, but internally, Hermione was starting to panic. This was to be her first Christmas without her mother and father, and she'd have to spend it with Lily and the rest. She loved Lily's family, of course, and she was eternally grateful that they had taken her in. But she had seen how they spent their holidays, and it was nothing like she was used to. With her parents, Hermione had spent her last five years in a car on the way to the hospital with her parents, squashed in-between a pile of presents for everyone. The white walls and bright fluorescent lights weren't ideal for Christmas, but she didn't mind all too much because it was interesting. While her parents were spending time with a bed ridden Auntie Rossum, Hermione would go around the hospital handing out cookies to desperate wives and husbands and children and even other patients. She knew some of the doctors because sometimes her father had to work over at the hospital, and she would quiz them on every known sickness and antidote known to the human race. In her opinion, that was a lot more interesting than watching Christmas specials on the couch like Lily's family did.

"Maybe we could spend some time together," said Severus hopefully.

Smiling, Lily said, "I thought that was the plan all along!"

Hermione smiled too, although hers was a bit more forced. If her friends noticed it, they didn't say anything about it.

"It's getting late, and Slughorn's essay is due tomorrow. I'm just going to head down to the Common Room if that's alright with you two."

Faking a yawn, Hermione stretched her back dramatically before she shouldered her bag and rushed up the staircase, on her way to the Common Room. But she was going so quickly that she didn't realize the staircase moving, as they often did. Flailing her arms in a rather comical method, Hermione tried to right herself and gain some balance, but to no avail. When she was just about to fall off the marble structure, someone grabbed a handful of her school uniform and pulled. Stumbling slightly, a very grateful and shocked Hermione turned around to hug however had helped her. Naturally she assumed it was Lily who had saved her, but when she pulled back she realized she was staring no one other than James Potter. Turning bright red from mortification, Hermione stammered thanks.

"Sure," replied James. "Anytime."

He was looking a bit paler than usual, but soon his confident demeanor and the usual lopsided grin returned. They stood there awkwardly for a moment or two before the staircase made up its mind to move again, and when it did, Hermione ran to the Common Room, not caring that she had to make a large detour because of the route change. When she did arrive, huffing and panting with exhaustion, just one look in the direction of Sirius, Peter and Remus was enough to decide to write her essay in the safe confines of the room, before James could arrive and start to make fun of her.

* * *

When Lily heard what happened, she laughed. There was a little concern mixed in with the amusement, but every time Hermione banged her head on the wall in embarrassment, she just had to laugh again. It was rare to see Hermione so flustered, and Lily wanted to savor any moment she could get. Hermione wasn't clumsy; she got everything done as swiftly as possible, which was quite an accomplishment for an eleven year old. Even her essay she had easily done in an hour, while Alice McArrent, one of the four Gryffindor first year girls, slaved away for more than three.

"Can't you just tell me?" Pleaded the Scottish girl.

"I've already _told _you, Alice, look in your textbook. The closest I'm going to give you to an answer is to check page fifty-three. You only need that one page to write the whole thing!" Growled Hermione in between head-butts with the wall.

And this went on for another fifteen minutes before Marlene and Dorcas, their other roommates, got enough.

"Alright, you three," said Marlene while gesturing to her roommates, "I'm off to bed. Really, Alice. I don't think you should keep these things until last moment. And poor Hermione, having to stay awake just to help you!"

Alice mumbled something about a very interesting game of Exploding Snap with Frank Longbottom. Marlene rolled her eyes and closed the curtains around her bed.

"She's right, you know," said Lily factually. "Keeping these things until last minute is not all too smart. I did mine during lunch hour."

Alice groaned again and let out a muffled scream against her pillow. Hermione rolled her eyes and got off her perch on the bed, and motioned Alice to move over. Aged eleven, Hermione was rather short, and she had to jump on the bed to get on it, and on impact the mattress shook.

"Look," said Hermione when she was settled down, "Just write the basics. That's all he wants. I mean, we've only brewed five potions in the entirety we've been here. All he wants is to know what potions are used for. A summary, if you will; not even a long one twenty inches at most, and you can write as big as you want."

Alice opened her potions book and turned to page fifty-three. In Hermione's book, notes were scribbled in the margins where Severus told her to change the odd ingredient now and there, and almost every sentence was underlined to signify importance. In Alice's book, a lone heart in the corner of the page was the only sign the textbook had ever even been opened to that place. Shaking her head, Hermione grabbed the quill from Alice's hand and underlined the most important fact. At the top of the page, she wrote in big capitals, _BEZOAR_, and underlined it twice. Hermione didn't doubt that those six letters, etched into the paper with a gruesome sparkling purple ink, would be the only linguistic influences in it from someone remotely close to the owner. That is, if you were to ignore the small written conversations that were probably kept their place in the back cover.

"Try to do your essay on that," said Hermione. "Slughorn requires a minimum of six hundred words, if you must."

She herself had written over a thousand, the markings all crammed together to fit in the assigned parchment length. Hermione stayed up with Alice until she had finished her paper, long after even Lily had called it quits. It was well after two when they put out the big lights, and Hermione planned to wake up early the next morning to prepare for the day like usual.

"Goodnight, Hermione," Alice said groggily in the face of her pillow, "Thanks for 'elping me."

But Hermione had fallen asleep as soon as her head had hit the pillow, and was already too far gone to reply.

* * *

Hermione tapped her foot impatiently, keeping her arms crossed and eyes narrowed to slits. She was wearing a green cashmere sweater that had belonged to her father, and because of its enormity on her, it hung loosely off her right shoulder. On her head nested a thick grey wool hat that kept her ears warm as well as well as a big part of her neck; she had showered and washed her hair, which was still wet.

"Are you guys ready?" she snapped.

Snape and Lily, both dressed in warmer attire, nodded grumpily. The trio was still in the Great Hall, and already their breath fogged up the air around them. Both Lily and Severus had a low tolerance for cold, and whereas Severus was wearing his usual black coat over a pair of baggy jeans and a long sleeved shirt, Lily had to wear her winter cloak over her yellow-knit overalls. The overalls clashed horribly with her hair, and Lily loathed wearing it, but it was the warmest thing she owned. All three of them had gone through a quick growth spurt, and most clothing garments were now too small for them. Severus's school uniform, especially, was looking dangerously small. He had to wear extra-long socks so that nobody would notice too quickly that his standard uniform started an entire hand span from his ankles.

"Well then," said Hermione crossly, "No time to waste. Chop, chop!"

She did not want to miss the train back to King's Cross. She had not yet bought any of Christmas the presents yet, wanting instead to save up for as long as possible. She had raised up to 403 British pounds, which would suffice. No expenses were to be saved for her friends and loved ones, not even on Petunia.

"Alright, alright. Do you have Apollo?" Asked Lily.

Hermione shook her head. She had sent Apollo off to Lily's parents with a letter telling them when the girls would arrive.

Lily nodded and said to Severus, "And do you have Crookshanks?"

Severus nodded distastefully. Crookshanks had already clawed his way through nine pairs of boxers, only six of whom belonged to Severus. Lily herself patted the cage with her tawny owl, Gaia, in it. Since coming home, the animal had only gotten fatter and lazier. It barely flew anymore. Hermione made a mental not to tell Lily to cut back on the food rations before the poor thing fell over dead from a heart-attack. Then, carrying their trunks as best as they could, they plowed their way through the snow. It had fallen on the ground thickly, the cold white cover coming up to Hermione's ankles.

"Uuurgh," complained Lily, "Maybe I should just let Gaia fly her way home. The cage is way too heavy in this weather."

Severus raised a skeptical eyebrow, glancing at the bird with amusement.

"You can try," he said, "But I think he'd have trouble flying to the gate, let alone all the way back home."

Hermione snorted in agreement, chuckling when she saw Lily's oblivious glance towards her pet. Once they had finally managed to get on the train and into an empty compartment, Lily started tapping her chin in thought. She was sitting in the seat next to the compartment door, Severus opposite of her, and Hermione in the window seat. The interior of the train was in classy reds and greys, and the cushioning in the seats was comfortable if slightly worn.

"What do you mean, she'd have trouble getting to the gate? She's an owl. Of course she'd be able to fly farther than that."

Hermione burst out laughing, clutching her sides. Severus merely shook his head.

"What Sev meant, Lily," said Hermione diplomatically, "Is that you've fed your owl a little too much treats. Maybe you could, eh, tone it down a little bit?"

Lily blinked a couple of times, her green eyes wide with astonishment. She took another long look at the cage, tapping her chin like she did when she was concentrating.

After a couple of minutes she said, "Well, I _do _suppose she may be a _little _on the heavy side."

Severus muttered something about that being the understatement of the year under his breath. Hermione smiled and rolled her eyes. At least Lily was not completely oblivious. Hugging the green sweater, which still faintly smelled like cigars and chocolate, to her person, Hermione rested her head on the window and closed her eyes while the humming of the engine soothed her to sleep.

* * *

Hermione was woken by a heavy-lidded Severus. He, too, had fallen asleep, and just woken a couple of minutes prior to Hermione.

"Are we there yet?" asked Hermione groggily.

Severus nodded and Hermione rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, yawning as she did so. He offered her the last Chocolate Frog to wake up, and she hesitantly accepted. She felt the beginning of a headache forming. The train was just pulling into King's Cross and she could already see Lily's smiling parents. Hermione stretched and cracked her back, the sound of gas bubbles in her ligaments bursting giving her satisfaction. Grabbing Apollo's empty cage in one hand and her trunk in the other, Hermione made her way towards the exit, not waiting for her friends. A sudden nauseous feeling had come over her, and she wasn't ready yet to vomit on the Hogwarts Express; she'd be a laughing stock for the rest of the school year. Her new nickname would probably be 'Heaving Hermione', or something equally horrendous. The headache didn't help much. Another problem was that she had expected it to be less crowded this time around, but apparently not many people stayed at Hogwarts during the holidays. All these people milling together only made her head hurt worse. Somebody pushed into her and Hermione turned around indignantly.

"Oi!" she cried out.

It was a boy who had bumped into her. He was maybe one or two years older than she, but was already two heads taller. His skin was tan and his eyes were a sort of murky, mysterious brown to go with his chestnut colored hair, which came to his shoulders. In a mischievous sort of way, he was quite handsome. But Hermione's gazing session was soon over when the boy raised an eyebrow.

"Oi yourself," he said.

His voice had a drawling tone to it, accented by a thick accent. It made his sentences sound like a series of grunts and tortured vowels. It reminded Hermione of _My Fair Lady_, a musical Lily's family watched every Christmas with the rest of their Audrey Hepburn collection. Huffing, Hermione turned around and pressed against the person closest to the exit, eager to get out of the train's halls. She felt the bile rising in her throat. Behind her, she could hear the boy and his friends laughing.

"Watch it!" hollered the person in front of her. "You'll just about kill a person the rate you're going!"

It was Sirius who had spoken. When the shaggy-haired boy caught sight of Hermione, he grimaced.

"Come to give me another lecture, have you?" he asked, "Although I think I might be the one doing that now. No manners, this one."

His grey eyes met Hermione's brown ones steadily. They were unreadable, but for a second Hermione thought she saw something akin concern flash in his eyes. _Oh shut up_, thought Hermione, _Sirius Black is only thinking about the next best way to prank you, if he's thinking about you at all._

"Oh, just move it, you big wanker. I've got to be somewhere," snapped Hermione.

Sirius wrinkled his nose and said, "No need to start swearing like a sailor!"

Hermione rolled her eyes and shoved past him to the doorway. She had no time for this, nor had she the patience. She jumped off of the train once it had opened its doors and dropped her bags off to where Laura and Gilbert were, and then immediately ran for the only bathroom on Platform 9 ¾ .

Kneeling over one of the four separate bathrooms, Hermione retched all the contents of her stomach into the bathroom, wishing she hadn't accepted the chocolate Severus had offered her. She retched again for good measure, before realizing how dirty the bathroom actually was. Granted, it was cleaner than most public bathrooms, but it still held the distinct smell of urine, plastic and lavender scented liquid soap; an odor Hermione didn't really want lingering on her skin. So she picked herself up and walked out of the stall to wash her hands, where a woman already washing hers spared her a concerned look. Hermione ignored her and splashed some cold water on her face, wincing when she saw her in the mirror. The dark blue circles under her seemingly translucent eyes were the only real color in her face, and she was shivering lightly. She looked almost… _grey_.

Drying herself off, Hermione walked out of the bathroom and started walking towards the area she had left her baggage behind, expecting to see the Evans family together. Instead there was an empty spot amidst a great throng of people. By this time Hermione had started shaking, feeling hot and cold all at once. The headache Even her sweater wasn't enough for her, and she had to hug it closer. It was mind boggling to Hermione; the green cashmere had always kept her father warm, so why didn't it keep _her _warm as well? _Why? _

"Why what, dearie?" someone asked from behind.

Hermione whipped around, only to deflate when she saw it was the woman from the bathroom. She realized she must've been talking out loud. Normally Hermione would've run off screaming bloody murder as her parents had taught her to, but the woman seemed so _nice_. The woman was round with child and wore slightly ragged clothing, something that one would find in a thrift store. Her eyes were a piercing shade of blue, contrasting greatly with her fiery red hair. Hermione wanted to say something assuring like _'It's nothing ma'am – just a bit tired.' _But the words didn't come out; at least, not the right ones.

"I'm cold," was the only thing Hermione was able to manage before erupting into soft sobs.

Surprised, the woman ran her hand through her hair before softly pulling Hermione through the barrier of Platform 9 ¾ . Soon Hermione found herself sitting in _Aunty Crawly's Coffee Shop_, the dingy little café at the station's entrance. She had never been inside before – apparently it didn't always pass the health inspection without a little help from Tracy Jorne, the owner's daughter who was famous for being 'easy'. If Hermione was honest with herself, she didn't really know what being 'easy' meant, and it was one of the only things her parents had been reluctant to tell her.

The inside of the café wasn't all too different from the outside. The room was dusty and there were large cobwebs in the corners. .the woman felt right at home though, and the way she was greeted warmly by both Tracy and the grumpy old woman behind the bar (whom Hermione assumed to be Aunty Crawly); it was obvious that she came here a lot. The woman, whose identity remained a mystery to Hermione, waved at three men in the middle of the shop. All three had red hair, and Hermione saw with a shock that two of them were the infamous Prewett twins. They were both smiling before, their dimples showing in a manner that made most girls blush, but when they saw Hermione they started grinning in a way that made even the teachers swoon.

One of them, Hermione wasn't sure which, said, "Why Molly, looks like you dragged in the teacher's pet!"

Hermione shrunk away from Molly. In the far back of her mind, Hermione cursed herself. This woman looked like a chubbier female version of the twins, and that had a panicky effect on her multiplied by ten in the state she was in. She should have known – everybody knew Molly Prewett – she had married Arthur Weasley straight out of Hogwarts and was as Gryffindor as anyone could be.

Smoothing down her sweater, Hermione said, "Thank you, Miss Prewett… but I'm sure Lily and her parents are looking for me. I'm staying with them, see, and I don't want to impose on your family meeting."

She was looking straight ahead as she said this. It wasn't that Hermione particularly hated Fabian and Gideon, but the last time they had noticed her they had played a prank on her that resulted in her not being able to look Professor Slughorn in the eyes for days afterwards.

"Molly made a clucking sound with her tongue and said, "Don't be silly, dear girl – if they're searching for you, they'll certainly find you here. Come sit, you're even paler than you were two minutes ago! Really, I don't know what's got you so panicked…"

Molly looked sharply at the twins, who raised their hands in the air to signify peace, albeit they did so with a guilty look on their faces. Molly motioned to Tracy, who came trotting in a rather short, tight mini skirt not at all proper for a young woman. At least, that's what Hermione thought; neither Molly nor the man who Hermione assumed to be Arthur Weasley paid any notice, and Fabian and Gideon seemed to be appraising the girl's long legs.

"Wotcher, Molly. What can I do for you fine folks today?" asked Tracy.

"I think she's sick," replied Molly concernedly.

Tracy nodded knowingly. She stooped down so she was level with Hermione, who was slouched in her seat despite trying to sit up as straight as possible. Tracy smiled a friendly, closed lipped smile, as if she was there only to help Hermione.

"My, my, such lovely brown eyes," she said enviously.

Hermione cocked her head to the side, until it rested on the table. No one had complimented her appearance before. Everybody assumed that Hermione was indifferent to any compliment or criticism other than on her academia, but no matter what Hermione was human, and humans were almost always vain creatures. Sometimes Hermione needed to know how she looked, whether she was having a bad hair day or she looked amazing; sometimes she needed something besides a casual 'okay' to satisfy her. She had read an old case, dated from 1964 that women and especially young girls needed an ego boost now and then just to keep going. Even her parents kept that sort of thing minimum. Hermione knew that, despite being adopted, her eyes were remarkably like those of her mother, and her mother's eyes used to be described as her most striking facial feature.

"But look how thin you are," continued Tracy, "You look like a stick with two arms, two legs, and a head! When's the last time you've eaten a proper meal? I bet you some fish and chips is gonna make you feel heavenly – we're famous for it, you know."

She smiled encouragingly, holding out a plate piled high with fish and chips, which had seemingly appeared from thin air. Then it all suddenly became clear to the eleven year old girl.

Narrowing her eyes to slits, Hermione shrieked, "I am _not_ anorexic, if that's what you're implying!"

Tracy was unfazed and said, "Look. I know how hard being an eleven year old girl is, Hermione. Especially for an inconveniently pretty girl like you. I was one, too!"

Hermione looked at the faces of everyone in turn. Much to her horror, Hermione saw that everyone's face was set in a perfectly somber expression, even those of the twins. With all the strength she could muster in her state, Hermione got up and dusted off her jumper.

"If you don't mind," she said coldly, "I'll be going now. Lily and the others must be looking for me. I wouldn't want to worry about me."

Hermione didn't have to walk far, however, because that moment a very flustered Evens family followed by a much calmer Eileen Prince and her sons.

"HERMIONE," yelled Laura, "WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN, YOUNG LADY! WE LEAVE ONE MOMENT TO HELP POOR LILY WITH HER BAGS AND YOU'RE GONE!"

Laura's words pounded at Hermione's head. Rubbing at her temple, Hermione hugged the older woman, just happy to be in the arms of someone who genuinely seemed to care for her. As soon as she made contact with her, Hermione fell asleep, snoring softly. Laura was surprised, but ceased her shouting.

"I'm sorry, are you this girl's mother? Poor thing was sick all over the second bathroom stall in the ladies room!" said Molly.

Laura startled, only now noticing the red haired woman and her entourage. She held out the arm that wasn't keeping Hermione upright and introduced herself. Now that she looked more closely, Hermione did look paler than usual.

"Laura Evans, eh? I'm Molly Weasley, this is my husband, Arthur, and these are my brothers. I thought this girl's name was Hermione Viennere. That's what Gideon told me – I should like to talk to the girl's mother, if you don't mind," said Molly.

In her sleep, Hermione stirred and frowned, as if she understood what Molly was saying. Laura held Hermione a bit closer and stood up.

Lauren furrowed her brow and said, "Thank you for your concern, but I'm Hermione's mother now. Anything you want to say should be said to me, if you don't mind."

Judging from the look of hurt that passed over Molly's face, Laura knew she had been too harsh. The woman opposite her looked young, and was probably feeling especially motherly now that she was obviously expecting, judging from her bulging belly. But she had promised Eileen and Severus a ride, and Hermione really wasn't looking too well.

"Well," said Molly softly, "Just wanted you to know your girl is most likely not eating enough, if you know where I'm coming from."

Lily, who had been standing behind her mother the whole time, let out a cry of alarm. Even the normally calm and collected Severus let out a grunt of surprise.

"What? Hermione eats like a bear! It's just that it's getting close to New Years and ever since her parents die– OW! Severus, What was that for!"

Severus made a not-so subtle move with his head, indicating that Lily should shut up. The reason was simple; no one, except for the teachers, knew that Hermione had been orphaned several months prior. Hermione never wanted the pity that came along with the news; she always thought it would result in undeserved results in her favor. If Hermione had been awake, she would've been appalled at Lily's ability to reveal secrets so easily.

Eileen, who was getting impatient, said, "Laura, I'm sorry to intrude, but Severus and I should probably get going. We'll take a cab if you need more time."

This was a blatant lie. They could not afford to pay a cab for such a distance – not on the minimal wage Eileen was paid, and it was simply too crowded to safely apparate. Laura shook her head and said 'goodbyes' and 'thank yous' to the Weasleys before shooing her own family out the door. The luggage had already been taken care of by Gilbert as soon as the last of their litter had stepped off the train, so now only the walk and drive were left. As she carried Hermione to the parking lot and the girl's burning skin dug into that of her own, Laura found it impossible to shake the thought that this was probably going to be the crappiest Christmas in the history of crappy Christmases.

* * *

Hermione didn't get out of bed until the day before New Year's Eve. She had spent the festivities in the confines of her and Lily's room, and to celebrate the holiday with her, so did the rest of the family. They brought up the tee-vee and even Petunia managed to trudge up the stairs to watch _My Fair Lady, Breakfast at Tiffany's, Sabrina, A Roman Holiday _and _Arianna _in one big marathon, just as the Evans family tradition called for. All three girls were charmed with Audrey Hepburn, and Hermione especially looked at her graceful movements and soft way of speech as a guide to being more 'feminine'. This time they didn't listen to the Beatles, because the band had officially broken up that year (and when the girls had gotten an owl at Hogwarts from their parents informing them of this, Lily promptly burst out in tears right in the Great Hall).

"It's a shame you couldn't get out of bed earlier," observed Lily. "Reckon the snow's too high now to walk through – you wouldn't be able to get to your old house on a sleigh!"

When Hermione heard this, she was crestfallen. She had wanted to go over to the house to gather up some books, and find the odd trinket or two to gift to her friends. Because she had been bed ridden the whole entire time, she didn't have time to buy any presents. This was something that contributed to the growing knot inside her stomach, which still hadn't uncoiled yet. Hermione viewed this particular knot like a snake – something horribly dangerous feeding off of her guilt, despair and anger until it was ready to strike her from within.

"I'm sorry I couldn't get you a Christmas present, Lils," said Hermione sorrowfully.

She herself had gotten presents from everybody; various teachers had sent her notes wishing her all the best, all of which she replied with page long declarations of loyalty and gratefulness; the Snape family had pitched in together to gift her a brand new edition of Nicholas Flamel's autobiography; Lily had presented her a photo album of the Beatles, with a long note of undying friendship written in felt pen on the inside cover; Petunia and her parents had bought her a beautiful red typewriter. Bothered by the fact that she had no gifts to give to anyone else, Hermione settled on writing a story. It was something she had always been encouraged to do by her parents, and now she was finally getting round to it. Putting in a fresh sheet of paper, Hermione wrote the title of her story.

_The Weeping Child _

_A Story By H.M Viennere _

And when she was done with that, she put a separate sheet in and dedicated her story to 'the late Olivia and John Viennere, the greatest scholars to have breathed.

The story went like this:

_Once there was a child who wept for the silliest things. She wept when there was no more jam in the cupboard, or when the birds stopped chirping at night. She wept so much that she'd have been able to take a bath in her tears if she were to collect them. _

_Her parents tolerated her incessant blubbering, even though they claimed it gave them a head ache. They let her because she was their little girl, and if weeping kept the child happy they would put up with the wailing forever, just to see the rare smile in-between fits. It was a smile to dote on, a smile to worship; it was a smile that showed just how content the girl was in only the way a truly happy being could. But if there was one person who could not ignore the sound of her wailing for all the smiles in the universe, it was the child's uncle. He did not see the productiveness behind this activity, and he was certainly a productive man – not a second was wasted by him! _

_But it was one day, on a New Year's Eve, no less, that our story really takes place, because that is the day the girl finally stopped weeping enough to realize she had been left to face the world alone. Her parents had slipped on the icy pavement while coming home from an annual party they attended without fail. A young maid walking her mistresses' dog stumbled upon them hours later, the mother's skull split open and the father's spine snapped in two. _

_After the funeral, at which the child did not weep at all, it was unanimously decided the child would stay with her uncle. Above all, he was used to the peace and quiet of the single life. Upon seeing the child's dry face, he cried, 'Ah, how is it that on the day you should you are not crying, you silly girl? It is because you've wasted your tears on the most frivolous things in life, and now you have not one to shed for your poor parents!' He looked her in the eyes real seriously and shook her until the child was too dizzy to see anything. Her uncle scoffed and said, 'Out with it, you silly girl! Once you are in my house, you shall not be permitted to cry anymore, so it is better you do it now!' He closed one eye and scrutinized his last remaining family, expecting her to weep like she always did. But she did not, and after spitting on the ground for good measure, he took her to his house. _

_Like her uncle had ordered, the child never once more wept in her life. Instead, she spent the remainder of her years quiet, neither shedding a tear or flashing one of the smiles her parents so patiently waited for. Instead, she became a shell. _

_THE END. _

After she had finished the story, Hermione considered ripping it apart and forgetting about it. But to some degree she liked the tale, underdeveloped as it was. Not to mention that she was desperate for presents. Gathering up that famous Gryffindor bravery, Hermione copied it several time and put each copy in a separate envelope. She sent Apollo with one to Molly Weasley, as a sort of explanation; she sent one to Eileen; she put one in Lily's trunk, and one under Petunia's pillow; she hid one under Laura and Gilbert's bed sheets; she even sent one to Dumbledore. After all that, Hermione still had one copy left, the original, which she addressed to J. Viennere, O. Viennere and R. Appledorn. With that one copy, Hermione snuck downstairs when no one was lucky and burned it in the fireplace, watching as the envelope and its contents turned to ash.

* * *

With the promises of the new year to come, Hermione tried to keep herself calm as she found herself in a little glitch. Laura and Gilbert had gone around the corner to the supermarket to buy some drinks for the girls' journey back to Hogwarts that same day, and had left both Lily and Hermione to bring their own luggage downstairs. This wouldn't have been a problem, except that Hermione's trunk was too big to slide down the stairs, and too heavy for either girl to carry. Petunia had left for the next door neighbors, the Dursleys, almost immediately after her parents were out the door.

"Maybe we should just wait," suggested Lily.

Even she knew the answer to that question would have been a 'no'. Both girls were extremely stubborn, and prided themselves for getting things done their way.

"I don't reckon we can," said Hermione. "Sev will be all over us for it; we'd never hear the end of it!"

In the couple times Severus had visited since Hermione had sent everybody their package, he still hadn't mentioned it, and Hermione refused to be the first one to bring it up. In fact, no one but Dumbledore and Molly had sent her a reply; Dumbledore had sent her a candy container with lemon drops that she now carried around with her, and Molly had sent her a generously filled bag with homemade toffee, which she had gladly shared with the people around her. But no one remotely close to her had commented on the story, which had made Hermione enormously self-conscious. Day and night, the only thought going through Hermione's head was, _was it really that bad?_

"I've got an idea!" exclaimed Lily, shaking Hermione out of her reverie.

As she listened to her best friend's plan, Hermione felt her eyes widen in horror and in barely suppressed excitement. Holding on to each other, Hermione and Lily sat down on the trunk, which was big enough to hold a baby elephant. Feeling ridiculously like part of a bob-sledding team, Hermione pushed at the walls. The trigger, added with inertia and gravity, forced the trunk to gather up speed until it reached the bottom, where it was halted so suddenly by the clothes rack stopping it in its tracks that it threw the two girls off completely. From where they lay in a jumbled mess of limbs and thick clothing, Hermione and Lily started laughing hysterically.

"We did it!" Exclaimed Lily. "WHOOHOOO! WE DID IT!"

Hermione laughed, and for the first time in an entire year it felt genuine.

* * *

**So? How much did you like the chapter? It's mostly a filler (you'd be surprised how hard it is to write something filling over six-thousand words), but I thought Hermione needed some additional dialogue time outside of the Marauders. Next chapter will be a little more interactive, I promise.**

* * *

**Challenge: 1. What do you think is going to happen in future chapters? 2. Besides Hermione/James or Hermione/Sirius, what other pairings wouldn't you mind seeing? 3. What was the message behind Hermione's story? What did she mean by it?**

* * *

**Fun Fact: Ook, a white snowy owl, was the first actor to be cast in the Harry Potter Series. He was cast as Hedwig, Harry's birthday present from Hagrid.**

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**Anyway, Complete the challenge and tell me, HOW CAN THIS IMPROVE? **

**Also, if you're interested in being a Beta for this story, or know someone who would, PM me; I've just figured out how it works (after all these years). **

**Happy reading, **

**RedRoses130**


	5. Back to the Hospital

**Hello! Sorry for the long breaks between updates! Don't worry, though; I haven't forgotten you or this story yet! **

**I own nothing. Thank the gods - I don't think I would have gotten anything finished, silly procrastinator I am. **

**Thanks, **

**RedRoses130 **

* * *

**Chapter Five **

* * *

_"Do not allow yourself to be blinded by fear and anger. Everything is only as it is." - Yuki Urushibara_

* * *

Hermione rolled her eyes. How was it possible that two people could be so infuriatingly _annoying_? She was sandwiched between both Fabian and Gideon Prewett, who were in the process of shoveling mounds upon mounds of food on her plate. From the way they were doing it so animatedly, they either didn't read the story or were too daft to understand its meaning.

"Surely there is someone else you can bother with your incessant nagging?" complained Hermione.

Beside her, Lily almost chocked on her bacon. Dorcas had to pet her on the back several times to get the offending piece of meat down the way it was supposed to, and even she was gaping at Hermione. It was with good reason, though, and the rest of the Gryffindor table looked on with baited breath. Both Gideon and Fabian were known to house quite the temper, and anyone who was on their radar was subject of their pranks. Anyone except for Sirius, James and Remus, that was. They tolerated Peter, only because he was inseparable from the other three.

"Feisty, I see," said Fabian.

"Just what we like to see in a woman!" finished Gideon, snagging a piece of toast from Hermione's plate.

By this point, Hermione was both uncomfortable and agitated, still mulling over the homework she had to turn in to Professor McGonagall next period.

"Oh honestly," she snapped, "What's the point of mounting my plate high with food when you're just going to eat it all?"

Gideon and Fabian stopped chewing long enough to tell her to lighten up and enjoy the day. Hermione scrunched her nose in disgust; her parents had been very strict with her manners, raising her to be a polite and proper young lady. As such, she was not particularly fond of the way she could see her breakfast turn to mush in another person's mouth.

"I am not hungry either way. In fact, I think I'll just head up to my next class early and sit there and read," she said.

She stood up and was about to leave when the red-haired boys pulled her down. They weren't overly forceful about it, but neither were they particularly sweet. With a wince, Hermione realized she'd probably find a bruise on either side of her arms later that evening.

"No you don't," said Gideon. The mischievous glint in his eyes was replaced by a pitying look which Hermione hated. Even when no-one but the teachers and Severus and Lily knew about her parents, she was still not treated normally. It angered her even more to see it for the wrong reasons.

"Look," she said while standing up for the second time, "I'm not hungry – you can't force me to eat, either. So I am going to do something useful around _people_ who are useful, and that is final."

With that she left the Great Hall, the Gryffindor house boring holes with their eyes in her back.

* * *

A month after her outburst in the Great Hall, Hermione was still regretting it. She had never felt so foolish for it than on the last day of the first semester, however. With tears coating her vision blurry, Hermione walked as fast as her worn out eleven year old legs could carry her. It had become a certain sort of weekly rite for Hermione to crawl her way to the infirmary in various states of distress. That day, Hermione's skin was a blue dark blue to mirror her mood. _A little gift_, Sirius had said mockingly. On some level, Hermione was impressed. It took a lot of skill to make something as big as this last this long. She only hoped that it wasn't permanent.

By humiliating the fun-lowing Prewett Twins in front of their fellow Gryffindors, not only had she managed to make them dislike her, but she had been estranged from the rest of her House. During meals she sat with Lily in a dark corner of the table, and after class had ended she never lingered and made her way directly to the dorms. But even though she tried her best to walk around the burning presences of the 'Detestable Four', as Lily and Severus so liked to call them, both Sirius and James seemed to want nothing less than her eternal misery. In fact, it was not that the Prewett Twins particularly detested her, but the two first-years _did_. And it wasn't a matter of blood purity, either; they seemed to detest blood prejudice.

So what was it about her that made her so different from the others? Peter Pettigrew didn't mind her, and she and Remus had gotten along quite nicely when they had been paired up by Slughorn. Lily and Severus didn't know either, and even they had stopped constantly accompanying her to the infirmary every time she got hurt. They had accepted her fate rather quickly, leaving their friend to fend for herself on many occasions. Hermione just didn't understand it, and as she boarded the Hogwarts Express to go home for the summer, questions were still burning holes in her mind.

* * *

Hermione was looking at her reflection in the bathroom mirror, and could not help but frown. She was getting so thin that she could count all twelve of her ribs if she wanted to, and she was so pale that she could rival Moaning Myrtle in complexion. Even though she made sure to eat enough fruit and protein, the stress was starting to be too much for her body.

"_Oh lordie," _was Laura's whispered reply to the sight of her thinning Goddaughter. "_She could give a corpse a run for its money." _

It had gone to the point that Laura had taken Hermione to the doctor. It had been painful at first because it was the same hospital where her Aunty Rossum had been treated, and it had been even more painful when Hermione's doctor recognized her.

"My, my, my, if it isn't Miss Viennere. Sure haven't seen you for a long time," said the doctor.

Doctor Rivers, a woman in her late forties with greying hair and laughing lines behind her eyes, had been one of the first to meet Hermione. She had been very understanding, and on some days, when her 'new and improved diet' went on a hiatus, she took a cookie or two for herself.

"Good morning, ma'am," said Hermione timidly, and a little ashamed at the fact that she had almost forgotten Dr. Rivers.

"It hasn't been _that _long. Surely you remember me? Some of the older patients are still asking when 'that nice girl who brought the cookies' will come along," said Dr. Rivers, chuckling.

Hermione's face blushed bright red with guilt, and she was extremely glad when Dr. Rivers began her examination. They went through routines Hermione still remembered from her youth, as she had not been to the doctor's for quite some time. She took a deep breath in and she took a deep breath out, and then she did both over again. Dr. Rivers continued talking to her throughout the entire process, although Hermione only replied with a nod or a hum. Half an hour later, after Hermione was given a stern talking to by both the doctor about proper eating habits, Laura was free to take Hermione home.

* * *

"I think I'll go back tomorrow," said Hermione pensively.

She was looking anywhere but Laura, who was staring straight ahead.

"What for, hun?" Asked Laura, glancing at her ward.

"Nothing important," Hermione said, quick to reassure the older woman. "I just wanted to pass out some cookies and stuff. You know, those typical summer cookies."

Laura smiled and said, "I think that's a great idea. I'll help you bake, if you want."

Hermione nodded absentmindedly and continued looking at the trees.

* * *

"If it aint' little Hermes," said Cynthia Cox when she saw Hermione.

The elderly American black woman, who had moved to England for a reason she kept secret from all, had never gotten her name right, and Hermione had long ago decided it wasn't worth it to try to correct her.

"It's me," said Hermione with a small weary smile. "Sorry I haven't been coming round. I was… rather busy."

Cynthia laughed, a deep throaty sound that made Hermione's heart lift a little. Giving cookies to the sick children was fun, and they liked the little tokens sweetly enough, but it was the elderly who really appreciated it. Often times they got lonely and fed up with only wrinkly faces like their own to amuse them, and Hermione had always been a positive influence with her curiosity and her ability to keep up with conversation. Cynthia herself had been all alone when she became a permanent fixture of the hospital, her husband having died a month prior to her check in all those years ago.

"Girlie," said Cynthia, "What in God's name _are _you talking about? You came by only yesterday. I remember 'cause you brought those little cupcakes for Garry's birthday!"

Hermione's smile faltered. She had asked the nurses where all the other senior citizens she knew were, and most of them had passed away. Garry Knowles, to whom Cynthia had been referring to, had been one of them. Hermione took a closer look at her elderly friend. She didn't seem too different from when Hermione was ten, but upon closer inspection it was quite clear. There were a couple more wrinkles on Cynthia's skin than there had been, and her back was a little more bent. Her voice was worn rough with age.

"Oh. Right. Well I promised you I'd be back soon, didn't I?" Hermione said, playing along for her friend's sake. "I always keep my promises."

Cynthia smiled again, but it was as if she was seeing Hermione for the first time.

"If it ain't little Hermes. Child, look at you! You've grown as thin as a pickle!"

For Cynthia's benefit, Hermione made a big show of stuffing a cookie in her mouth and chewing as enthusiastically as she could. She had never felt heavier.

Giving her old American friend a quick kiss on the cheek and a promise to come back soon like she used to, Hermione said goodbye and left a good pile of cookies for all of the other patients behind. She hadn't met any new ones in this particular ward, as it was visiting time and most of them had families to talk to. Sighing unhappily, Hermione made her way out of the Alzheimer's facility and made her way to the cancer ward.

* * *

An angry looking girl occupied Auntie Rossum's bed. Chemo had left her head bald and she was even paler than Hermione, with circles under her size twice as big. Her arms, crossed over her chest, looked frail and bruised and the girl was shaking slightly, as if she had it cold. Hermione did not enter the ward, which was separated from the rest of the hospital by a glass door. Instead, she hugged the basket of cookies close to her person and breathed in the scent of fresh goods. Looking at the girl, Hermione tried to remember if her Auntie Rossum looked that unhealthy before she was going to die.

* * *

_Hermione stood stubborn in her itchy black dress, which she really did not want to wear. It was ugly and looked more like a potato sack than a dress she should be wearing to her family's funeral. Her hair had been pinned back but frizzy strands were escaping from their confines. Next to her, Laura tried to get her to put on a vest, but Hermione refused, even though it was raining and it was cold. Eventually Laura just gave up and put a hand on Hermione's shoulder, who shrugged it off, angry._

_She looked around and was dismayed to see that she was the only child attending the funeral. Both Lily and Petunia had wanted to come, but neither Laura or Gilbert thought it was a good idea. If they had gotten their way, Hermione would be sitting through story time now instead of getting soaked by traditional English rain in a traditional English cemetery. But Hermione had been stubborn, and so she stood among her parent's colleagues, waiting for the three black coffins to be lowered into respective plots of ground. No one had felt the need to say any words, and though it made Hermione slightly angry to see that no one wanted to properly wish her parents and aunt a goodbye, she had said nothing, either. She stared hard at the closed coffins as they were lowered to the ground, and the only sound to be heard was the pitter-patter of rain falling on the people's umbrellas. _

* * *

In retrospect, Hermione supposed it would've been more appropriate if she had cried at the funeral instead of glaring at the coffin-enclosed corpses of her family. But she had been so angry, and she still was. Angry that her family had left her all at once, no warning. Angry that they had tried to keep her away from saying good bye. Hell, she was even angry at stupid Sirius Black, and that horrid James Potter for making fun of her and she was angry at Lily and Severus for not doing anything to help her. She was so, so, _so _angry, and it was only now that she realized to what extent her hatred went.

Hermione called a nurse over and asked her politely if she could bring out the cookies for the patients and family members, as she had somewhere to be. The nurse, a young and fresh-faced girl fresh out of college, hastily accepted, and Hermione had a sneaking suspicion that she had been on sponge-bath duty or something just as horrible. Looking one last time at the bed she was so familiar with, carrying the girl she was so unfamiliar with (yet felt an understanding for), Hermione finished the rest of her cookie rounds and went outside to moodily wait for Laura to come pick her up.

* * *

_Sneak Peak for next chapter: _

Hermione stared blankly at the cake in front of her. Lily nudged her and told her to blow the candles out, all twelve of them. The cake was a horrible pink color, and Hermione realized it was probably strawberry (something which Hermione detested but Lily loved). Forcing a happy, satisfied smile on her face, Hermione laughed in what was supposed to be a good-natured sort of way. It was a bit stiff, a bit too rehearsed, nothing a little practice couldn't fix. She blew out the candles and everyone around her cheered.

"So, Hermione," asked Severus excitedly. "You're twelve now. Any plans we should be aware of?"

Hermione shrugged and closed her eyes and scrunched her nose, something she saw Laura do every time she thought really hard.

"Nothing, really. Just eat this delicious cake and try to make good marks again, I suppose."

Severus rolled his eyes in a satisfied manner, obviously having foreseen this answer. In her mind, however, Hermione was rolling her own eyes in distaste at her answer…

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**Ok. So I know I should have updated this story about half a year ago. I know, I know, I'm a horrible person and whatnot. I'm also terribly sorry if I've insulted anyone with my portrayal of the hospital – I realize it's kind of unrealistic **_**and **_**this whole plot between Hermione coping with the death of her parents is dragging on a bit, but more HermionexSiriusxJames moments to come soon! **

**That being said, tell me in some way or other which one you'd want her to end up with! **

**P.s.- I know this chapter is ridiculously short for such a long break. But I realized that it was really hard for me to write those first couple of chapters because of their length. So I might still break those up, but from now on the chapters will be 2-4 thousand words long. **

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**Challenge: 1. Who was your favorite character in this chapter? 2. Least favorite character? 3. Hermione is a bit of a sad sack right now, but what side do you really want to be shown in the next chapter (i.e. angry, desperate, happy, etc.)? 4. Any predictions for what is going to happen in the future of this story? **

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**Fun Fact: So I watched the Hobbit recently, and it was quite good. I couldn't help but fangirl every time Kili, Filli or Thorin came on screen. I mean, dayyuum. That's one hot line of dwarves, hehehe. As for the fact, Legolas is Thranduil's son (one hot line of elves). **

**Fun Fact(2): Chocolate milk used to be sold as a medicine (best medicine ever, I must say)!**


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